Halle Berry Was the Only Bond Girl Close to Being a Female James Bond According to This Producer
Halle Berry joined the James Bond mythology after being cast as a Bond girl for Die Another Day. But one producer felt she played a much bigger role than Bond girls of the past.
Halle Berry was seen as the closest actor to a female James Bond in ‘Die Another Day’
Berry was cast as Jinx in Brosnan’s last Bond film Die Another Day. Speaking with Vanity Fair, Berry reflected on how she ended up in the role in the first place. According to the actor, she didn’t have to audition for the part. But rather, it seemed producer Barbara Broccoli already had her in mind as Brosnan’s co-star.
Berry had plenty of reasons to accept the part from Broccoli, which included joining James Bond’s rich legacy.
“I was really excited about Bond because that’s a franchise that’s iconic,” she said. “It’s a part of film history, really, so to be a part of that franchise was very meaningful to me. And this version of a Bond woman was very different than any Bond woman I had seen before. When Barbara Broccoli came to me with the role, she explained that I would get to be a different kind – a new kind – of Bond girl. Which would allow me to be more active and sort of be… working alongside Bond in a new way, and that really excited me.”
Apart from that, she was excited about putting a new creative spin on the Bond girls of the past who she admired.
“But also it excited me too to reimagine that great Ursula Anders scene that was so iconic… in a new way and pay homage to who she was and what this series was really all about,” she said.
In a 2002 interview with Entertainment Weekly, Bond producer Chris McGurk echoed Berry’s sentiments about Jinx. To McGurk, Berry represented a more updated and active version of a Bond girl that was Bond’s equal.
”She’s prominent in the film, too,” McGurk said. “She’s a totally new type of Bond girl. She’s as close to a female Bond as has ever been written into the series.”
Halle Berry almost starred in her own James Bond spin-off film
Berry was the first Bond girl to be considered for a spin-off film. In a separate interview with Entertainment Weekly, Berry shared that there was a conversation to continue the adventures of Jinx outside of James Bond. But she also asserted that it wouldn’t be as familiar as Brosnan’s Bond pictures.
“I’ve been talking to the writers about it, and they had a great idea for who she is and where she comes from, and I think it won’t be like Bond,” Berry said “I think we’ll have elements of that humor Bond has. But it won’t be as tongue-in-cheek.”
The spin-off film, however, never got off the ground. Berry felt the planned feature might’ve been too ahead of its time.
“It was very disappointing,” she said according to Comic Book Movie. “It was ahead of its time. Nobody was ready to sink that kind of money into a Black female action star. They just weren’t sure of its value. That’s where we were then.”
Who Halle Berry thought should play James Bond after Daniel Craig
The Bond franchise was given new life after Daniel Crag was cast as the 007 agent. Now that Craig’s time as the character is done, many have wondered who would be good enough to replace him. Because of her connection to the Bond franchise, Berry was asked in an interview with Today who she would pick.
“I’d wanna see Hugh Jackman or Idris Elba. I would go for him,” Berry said.
