James Bond is Male Character, Says 007 Producer

 Daniel Craig poses for photographers as he attends the world premiere of the James Bond 007 film "Specter" at the Royal Albert Hall in London, the UK, Oct.26, 2015. (Reuters Photo).
Daniel Craig poses for photographers as he attends the world premiere of the James Bond 007 film "Specter" at the Royal Albert Hall in London, the UK, Oct.26, 2015. (Reuters Photo).
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James Bond is Male Character, Says 007 Producer

 Daniel Craig poses for photographers as he attends the world premiere of the James Bond 007 film "Specter" at the Royal Albert Hall in London, the UK, Oct.26, 2015. (Reuters Photo).
Daniel Craig poses for photographers as he attends the world premiere of the James Bond 007 film "Specter" at the Royal Albert Hall in London, the UK, Oct.26, 2015. (Reuters Photo).

"James Bond is a male character!" 'No Time to die' producer Barbara Broccoli insists a woman won't portray the spy... and says she won't discuss Daniel Craig's replacement until 2022.

According to The Daily Mail, Bond producer has said she believes 007 will always be a male character.

The head of Eon Productions, who signs off on every key hiring and firing in the franchise, said she will be discussing who will take over the role from Daniel Craig next year - and that it will be a man.

"James Bond is a male character. I hope that there will be many, many films made with women, for women, by women, about women. I don't think we have to take a male character and have a woman portray him. So yes, I see him as male. She also admitted she hasn't faced the fact that current Bond Craig - who will not play the part any longer, following the latest film No Time To Die - is stepping down."

"I'm sort of in denial; I would love for Daniel to continue forever. So I'm not thinking about his replacement. That's something Michael G. Wilson, her half-brother and fellow producer and I will discuss next year," she added.

Asked if conversations about Craig's successor are imminent, she replied: "No. We want to celebrate the fantastic tenure of Daniel Craig, who's given everything to this character into this franchise for 15 years and it is really time to celebrate him."

No Time To Die director Cary Joji Fukunaga, the first American to direct a Bond film, said whoever replaces Craig will have a tough act to follow.

Asked if he would like to see more diversity in the character, he said: "That's a tough one. I don't actually have a strong opinion either way on that. I think it's going to be hard for anyone to follow in Daniel's footsteps because, for me, as much as I liked Pierce Brosnan, I was in my early 20s, and kind of checking out of the films a bit."

Craig, 53, told Radio Times last week that he also believes Bond should remain male. The actor said: "There should simply be better parts for women and actors of color. Why should a woman play James Bond when there should be a part just as good as James Bond, but for a woman?"



‘Mufasa’ and ‘Sonic 3’ Rule First Weekend of 2025

Director Barry Jenkins at the premiere of "Mufasa: The Lion King." (AFP via Getty Images)
Director Barry Jenkins at the premiere of "Mufasa: The Lion King." (AFP via Getty Images)
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‘Mufasa’ and ‘Sonic 3’ Rule First Weekend of 2025

Director Barry Jenkins at the premiere of "Mufasa: The Lion King." (AFP via Getty Images)
Director Barry Jenkins at the premiere of "Mufasa: The Lion King." (AFP via Getty Images)

The Walt Disney Co.’s “Mufasa” claimed the No. 1 spot on the North American box office charts over the first weekend of 2025.

The photorealistic “Lion King” prequel earned $23.8 million in its third weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday. Paramount’s “Sonic the Hedgehog 3,” which has dominated the past two weekends, wasn’t far behind.

“Sonic 3” stayed close with a 3-day estimate of $21.2 million, bringing its total domestic earnings to $187.5 million and helping the overall franchise cross $1 billion worldwide. “Mufasa’s” running total is slightly less, with $169.2 million.

In third place, Focus Features’ “Nosferatu” remake defied the fate of so many of its genre predecessors and fell only 39% in its second weekend. Horror films typically fall sharply after the first weekend and anything less than a 50% decline is notable.

“Nosferatu,” which added 140 screens, claimed $13.2 million in ticket sales, bringing its running total to $69.4 million since its Christmas debut. The film, directed by Robert Eggers, already surpassed its reported production budget of $50 million, though that figure does not account for marketing and promotion expenses).

No new wide releases opened this weekend, leaving the box office top 10 once again to holdovers from previous weeks. Several have been in theaters since Thanksgiving. One of those, “Moana 2,” claimed the No. 4 spot for Disney in its sixth weekend in theaters. The animated sequel earned another $12.4 million, bumping its global total to $960.5 million.

The Bob Dylan biopic “A Complete Unknown,” dipped only slightly in its second weekend, bringing in $8.1 million. With $41.7 million total, it's Searchlight's highest grossing film since Disney acquired the company in 2019.

A24’s drama “Babygirl," which added 49 locations, held steady at $4.5 million.

Another Thanksgiving leftover, “Wicked,” rounded out the top five. Universal’s movie musical was made available to purchase on VOD on Jan. 31, but still earned another $10.2 million from theaters. The movie is up for several awards at Sunday’s Golden Globes, including nominations for Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, best motion picture musical or comedy and “cinematic and box office achievement,” which last year went to “Barbie.”

Also in theaters this weekend was the IMAX re-release of David Fincher’s 4K restoration of “Seven,” which earned just over $1 million from 200 locations.

The 2025 box office year is already off to a better start than 2024, up around 20% from the same weekend last year.