'Bond 25' casts Rami Malek as villain, Daniel Craig returns as 007
Oscar-winner Rami Malek will play the villain in the still-untitled 25th film in the James Bond franchise. He'll face off with James Bond vet Daniel Craig. This will be Craig’s fifth time playing the role of secret agent 007.
Spoiler alert: This article may contain spoilers for the upcoming "Bond 25."
The next James Bond film will show the secret agent pass the torch — and fans of the Ian Fleming-inspired franchise are in for a shock as to which star gets the latest license to kill.
Reports claim that the next Agent 007 will be played by British actress Lashana Lynch.
Lynch, 31, had a breakout role in "Captain Marvel" as Maria Rambeau, the titular superhero's best friend and fellow Air Force pilot.
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The Daily Mail reports that screenwriter Phoebe Waller-Bridge intervened to pass the torch on to the star.
"There is a pivotal scene at the start of the film where M says 'Come in 007,' and in walks Lashana who is black, beautiful and a woman," a Bond insider claimed. "It's a popcorn-dropping moment. Bond is still Bond but he's been replaced as 007 by this stunning woman."
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Cast member Lashana Lynch attends the "Bond 25" film launch at Ian Fleming's home "GoldenEye" on April 25, 2019 in Montego Bay, Jamaica. Reports say that Lynch will inherit the 007 title in the upcoming film. (Getty)
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The source added, "Bond, of course, is sexually attracted to the new female 007 and tries his usual seduction tricks, but is baffled when they don't work on a brilliant, young black woman who basically rolls her eyes at him and has no interest in jumping into his bed. Well, certainly not at the beginning."
The insider also claimed that the phrase "Bond girls" is now verboten: The females in the spy franchise are now reportedly ordered to be called "Bond women."
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Waller-Bridge, who pens the hit "Killing Eve," said, "There's been a lot of talk about whether or not Bond is relevant now because of who he is and the way he treats women. I think that's b—t. I think he's absolutely relevant now. [The franchise] has just got to grow. It has just got to evolve, and the important thing is that the film treats the women properly. He doesn't have to. He needs to be true to his character."
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The insider claims that the "Bond 25" script will maintain all of the classic Bond elements, including action and fight scenes with star Daniel Craig, while also tackling the super-spy's role in the #MeToo era — but with an injection of humor over overt preaching.
The as-yet-untitled film will also see Christoph Waltz reprise his role as James Bond's arch-enemy Ernst Stavro Blofeld, Variety reported.
"Bond 25" has been plagued with reports of issues, including filming delays due to Craig's ankle injury, Rami Malek's conflicting schedule, on-set explosions and Grace Jones allegedly walking off the set after disappointment in the size of her cameo role.
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Malek denied reports that he and Craig were unable to film scenes together, while director Cary Fukunaga denied his video game habits delayed production.
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