Why James Bond Shouldn't be Played by a Woman

*Whips out phone and sees article that Daniel Craig won't be returning as James Bond

*Cries to sleep

          I can't be the only one that is upset that Daniel Craig not returning as 007.  He's probably the best Bond of all time, or maybe that is just bias because he is the Bond that I grew up with.  However, it is too late, because he already rejected a $100 million deal to act in two movies.  With that already set in stone, it is time to look for a new Bond.

          Some actors said to be in the running are Tom Hiddleston (Loki from Avengers) and Jamie Bell (The Thing from 2015's Fantastic Four.)  However, something else caught my attention besides Loki being rumored to be 007: there were rumors that women were in the running to be cast as James Bond (or Jane Bond.)  Some actresses said to throw their name in the hat were Gillian Anderson and Emilia Clarke.  Not to mention, there is said to be a female director.

          If the rumors are true, and there is a fighting chance for a woman to be cast as Jane Bond, this could potentially change the depiction of women in media.  This is a chance for the stereotype of ditzy women to be broken, and show that women can do everything that a man can do, and even more.

          However, as much as I am all for the idea that women should have equal shots at playing characters who have traditionally been played by men for no particularly good reason, (like the new Ghostbusters,) James Bond is a different thing.  Women should get great spy and action roles. But they shouldn't play James Bond. 

          James Bond is not required to be a man because only a man can carry off a fantastic action sequence, or only a man can romance an army of beautiful women, or only a man can credibly represent the British Empire, or any other similar nonsense. Women can do all of those things in real life, and we certainly should be permitted to do them on screen.  We had definitely been proven this point time and time again with films and movies centered around strong female characters, such as Agent Carter, Jessica Jones, Black Widow, Katniss Everdeen, etc...

          Instead, James bond should be played by a man because the character is a sort of "study" of masculinity in a particular context.  Having a woman play the premier spy in the British secret service, a character who uses her sexuality to gain information and advantage without being judged for it, and goes to great lengths in defense of her country, would be fascinating. A performance like that could challenge assumptions for what men and women could do. But it would not explore the thing that James bond movies are designed to explore.

          On a random note, I also think that a female Bond can easily slip into the archetype of the "Fighting F***-Toy."

          Beyond the question of what James bond is for, I think it is worth asking serious questions about whether allowing women to occasionally step into roles that have previously been reserved for men is a significant step forward for gender equality in the entertainment industry.

          If our goal is for Hollywood to create action-oriented jobs for women that will be available for decades to come, the we need franchises that are BUILT aroud women in the first place.  We need roles like Bond's, or Jason Bourne's that are designed to be occupied by a rotating series of women.  Borrowing Bond's role might be a fun fantasy, but real power means a role that we don't have to give back to men (just like the WW2 jobs that women had to give back, once the soldiers returned.)