The current James Bond, Daniel Craig, publicly confirmed that “No Time to Die,” the 25th movie in the storied James Bond franchise scheduled to come out later this year, will be his last.
The question now is, is the time ripe for a different James Bond in an age of diversity, gender equality and other forms of representation?
There have been rumors of a black Bond through Idris Elba, or even a female Bond for that matter. But how about an Asian to play the fictional MI6 top agent?
When it comes to choosing the actor from Asia who will play the super spy, if and when an Asian is indeed in the running for the coveted role, one name comes to mind: Henry Golding.
Henry who?
Henry Golding, the Malaysian-British star of the romantic comedy film Crazy Rich Asians, and other movies such as Simple Favor, Last Christmas, The Gentleman and soon will star in the G.I. Joe origin story Snake Eyes, is considered among the frontrunners for the coveted role because of his most recent run of movie successes.
He welcomed the thought of having a first-ever Asian Bond, which he was quoted as saying as an “opportunity for change.” He, however, neither confirmed nor denied if he will be involved or being considered in the search.
But an Asian who will utter the famous line “Bond, James Bond” is indeed an exciting prospect.