Rumors about James Bond movies are plentiful across the pond, so picking out which ones are legit can be tough. That's basically my way of saying to not invest too much in this latest one, although if true it would be quite a turn for the franchise on top of just being a good casting decision. The Mirror is reporting that Danny Boyle's upcoming Bond 25 is eyeing Helena Bonham Carter to play the series' first female lead villain in years.
The story goes that producers are really high on the two-time Oscar nominee, as they want to assemble an A-list cast for the anticipated movie. At this point it doesn't appear that Carter has been officially approached, she's just high on their wish list. Higher than Angelina Jolie, apparently. If true this would be the first female antagonist for Bond since Sophie Marceau's Elektra King in 1999's The World is Not Enough.
There have been rumblings of another female Bond villain for some time, picking up steam after Quantum of Solace when a leader of the criminal organization Quantum was needed. However, that idea was quietly dropped in the build up to Skyfall and Spectre, especially when the classic villain Blofeld (played by Christoph Waltz) became available for use. We've heard the reason Bond producers wanted Boyle to direct so badly is because of the tremendous script he and writer John Hodge came up with. Perhaps that includes giving 007 a female adversary to contend with?
As for Carter, she'll be seen this week as part of the Ocean's 8 ensemble. The 25th Bond film opens November 8th 2019.
