If Amazon MGM Studios casts Saoirse Ronan as the villain in James Bond 26, that decision is more compelling than Jacob Elordi as 007.
Ronan has made it perfectly clear that if she joins the Bond franchise, she wants to play a villain.
“I want to go dark. I said that I wanted to be a Bond villain and I’m dead serious,” Ronan told Empire. “I think it would be really interesting, having a young female villain. Especially for girls and women, to see someone who can just take all that pent-up anger and direct it somewhere, there’s something interesting in that dramatically. So I would love to do more of that.”
Ronan’s interest in playing a villain comes at a time when her partner, Jack Lowden, is reportedly in the running to play James Bond, as are other names like Elordi and Callum Turner. Ronan certainly has the acting credentials to join the Bond universe. At 32, she’s already been nominated for four Oscars.
The next James Bond movie will be the first under full creative control at Amazon MGM Studios. As the espionage franchise enters a new era, it is crucial to be bold. Casting Ronan would be an inspired decision, one that would matter more than if Elordi got the call to play Bond.
Why Saoirse Ronan’s Bond villain would be important
In the Bond franchise, many female characters have played a henchwoman. Notable examples include Famke Janssen as Xenia Onatopp and Rosamund Pike as Miranda Frost. However, it’s rare for a female to be one of the main villians. You have to go back to 1999’s The World Is Not Enough for the last time, where a female played the primary villain. That was Sophie Marceau as Elektra King.
No doubt about it, Elordi getting cast as Bond would be a huge deal. It’s one of the most prized Hollywood roles. Whoever wins the Bond role, it’s likely going to be a white male from either Europe or Australia. While there’s nothing wrong with that, it’s not as shocking as if Denis Villeneuve cast Ronan as the primary villain.
A Bond movie is only as strong as its villain. Let’s look at Daniel Craig‘s five Bond movies. The two highest-rated ones on Rotten Tomatoes are Casino Royale and Skyfall. Unsurprisingly, those movies had strong villains in Mads Mikkelsen’s Le Chiffre and Javier Bardem’s Raoul Silva. Both Mikkelsen and Bardem are highly respected and critically acclaimed actors. Ronan certainly falls under the same category as those two men.
Amazon has one shot to get this right. A lot is riding on James Bond 26, as it will set up the next decade of Bond movies. The new Bond needs to take on an iconic villain in his first outing. Taking a shot on Ronan, who has the recognition and talent to go toe-to-toe with the actor playing Bond, is the right choice.
