After a deluge of leaks, rumors, and hearsay, the trailer for the newest James Bond outing, “No Time to Die,” has now arrived. Though a trailer can only reveal so much, what’s presented here looks like another 007 thrill ride. Take a look:
As is the case with every franchise movie, the Bond films live and die by their villains, and “No Time to Die” made the bold choice of featuring Academy Award winner Rami Malek (of “Bohemian Rhapsody” fame) in the coveted role. Though the trailer gives little indication of the villain’s plan or motives, initial reports were that he would be an eco-friendly mastermind.
“His unnamed nemesis — nicknamed Greenfinger by insiders — has a lair powered by an algae farm and with a Zen garden,” reported The Sun back in October. “As the plot is shrouded in secrecy, it is not clear what the villain is plotting to do or how 007 confronts him. Director Cary Joji Fukunaga is so keen to keep the plot under wraps he has reportedly filmed three endings. But an eco-friendly villain would be a Bond first. One theory is that algae blooms can produce deadly toxins.”
A source close to production told The Sun that the film’s villain, played by the Oscar-winning Rami Malek, will own a sinister algae farm.
“The baddie’s lair apparently has a giant algae farm,” the source said. “Something like that would look very sinister and green so will look great on the screen. Quite how it will impact Bond only the scriptwriters can know but fans will be keen to find out.”
At one point in the trailer, a noticeably infuriated James Bond (featuring Daniel Craig in his final outing as the famed spy) tells Malek that “history isn’t kind to men who play God” — indicating the character’s delusions of grandeur and possible disregard for human life in the pursuit of a “higher” goal.
Leading up to the trailer’s release, the film has been dogged by multiple leaks and rumors as to how the makers plan to usher the infamously lecherous British spy into the #MeToo era. Actress Lashana Lynch, who will reportedly make history as the first black woman to play 007, told The Hollywood Reporter recently that making a #MeToo-conscious movie was important to everyone involved in the film’s production.
“Everyone was really responsive to having her be what I wanted,” Lynch said of her character. “You’re given a fresh perspective on a brand-new black woman in the Bond world.”
“I didn’t want someone who was slick. I wanted someone who was rough around the edges and who has a past and a history and has issues with her weight and maybe questions what’s going on with her boyfriend,” she later added.
Lynch even suggested to screenwriter Waller-Bridge the possibility of a scene in which her character is on her period. “We had one conversation about her maybe being on her period in one scene, and maybe at the beginning of the scene — and I spoke to Cary about this — throwing her tampon in the thing,” said Lynch.
However, Phoebe Waller-Bridge recently clarified that she had no intention of turning the iconic spy into a feminist superhero.
“They were already doing that themselves. They’re having that conversation with themselves the whole time,” she told BBC Radio 4’s The Today Programme. “They were just looking for tweaks across a few of the characters and a few of the storylines.”