Feminist, Daniel Craig
Daniel Craig as 007 in Spectre
The world’s suavest spy would appear to be an unlikely standard bearer for feminism; until now.
Daniel Craig calls James Bond a misogynist.
And he doesn’t want to play him again. Or more specifically:
I’d rather break this glass and slash my wrists… All I want to do is move on.
But he’s worked to make the Bond franchise more feminist.
When asked how he liked succumbing to the charms of “an older woman” (51-year-old Monica Baluchi) Mr. Craig pointed out,
I think you mean the charms of a woman his own age. We’re talking about Monica Bellucci, for heaven sake. When someone like that wants to be a Bond girl, you just count yourself lucky.
Monica Baluchi
Craig has worked to counteract 007’s misogyny by making the women as empowered as possible in the new Spectre.
When a reporter suggested that Bond had grown more chivalrous, Craig explained,
That’s because we’ve surrounded him with very strong women who have no problem putting him in his place.
He adds,
There’s a complete separation between the character and me. If I went home and acted like James Bond (His eyes roll, contemplating the reaction of his wife of four years, actress Rachel Weisz) I be thrown out, believe me. (Laughing) Honestly, I’d get in serious trouble if I did that.
AND: don’t forget about this Public Service Announcement that questions whether women and men are now equal, and finding the answer to be, “Not yet.”
Daniel Craig walks the proverbial mile in her shoes — in fact, in drag:
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Posted on November 6, 2015, in feminism, sexism, women and tagged 007, Daniel Craig, feminism, James Bond, Monica Baluchi, sexism, Spectre, women. Bookmark the permalink. 22 Comments.
BroadBlogs 
This is really interesting in light of the conversation we had about Disney princesses the other week. I feel as though it is really about time that James Bond started respecting women. I’ll be honest and admit I have not seen all of the James Bond movies, let alone about half, but from what I do know James Bond is a womanizer who is deeply emotionally unattached. He represents a lot of the ideas that men have to live up to, as in objectify women, emotionless, ruthless, and a leader. This does not show good messages for women or men. While it has been a long time coming that James Bond is feminist I am glad that it happened and that Daniel Craig is speaking out about the issue. As with the Disney movies and how Belle or Pocahontus defied woman role, I hope James Bond can do the same. I hope his character can bring about inspiration for gender equality.
Yeah, you see the change in our culture reflected in the movies. Thanks for relating this to what we talked about in class.
I applaud Daniel Craig for standing up, not enough male actors stand up for women. In the entertainment media the objectification of women in society is very popular. If a woman has an attractive body it is immediately used to attract viewers, whether they have an important role or not. This is detrimental to humanity because the media is creating social labels for both men and women which can result in negative social and physical behaviors. Not only does the media post an example of how people should act and look but it also tells people that age has a large part in their sex-appeal. One of the most deceptive double standards in our culture is the notion that men are considered sexually attractive throughout their entire lives, while women rapidly lose their sex appeal as they age. The fact that people like Daniel Craig are standing up to prevent such discrimination means a lot, like every change we have had in history changes begin by standing up and taking small steps.
🙂
I really do agree with Daniel Craig and I think that him being a feminist can do nothing but help the franchise. However, having actually seen the movie, it’s pretty clear that there still is a lot of work to be done, considering the “older woman” in the movie that has been talked about so much, is only in it for no more than 5 minutes where she sleeps with him and then we never see her again. It was a bit disappointing. I think Craig really does want to change up the misogynistic nature of the movies, and hopefully they’ll be more of a change next time.
I haven’t seen the movie. Truth is, I probably won’t see it. So thanks for filling us in. Interesting that such a big deal is made over five minutes — that has a lot, doesn’t it?
I’m so happy that Craig said all those things. I’m such a huge fan of his and I love all the bond movies (even Nelson’s). It gives me just a tiny bit of hope for Hollywood actors.
Me too!
This is a very important cornerstone in film if real change is to be made, seeing how iconic the James Bond franchise is in action. Notoriously someone who puts down women to be sexual objects, by being vocal about not only the support Daniel Craig embodies and changes made to make Bond more equal minded. Hopefully the rest of the industry takes heed and the disgusting discrimination in film making can end soon.
Hope so!
I loved the video. 🙂
Me too!
Great article. I haven’t seen the movie yet, so I only hope it holds up to his standards.
Me too. Look forward to your review, if you do one.
Cousin you continue to inspire. I forwarded this to my granddaughter who is preparing a presentation on equality and the painful use of filthy/sexual words when bullying – she’s 12 years old. Her audience will be 11-12 year olds, 50% male and her school is supporting her.
So great to hear from you, Vicki! And so glad to help out.
Is that Judi Dench narrating? I have been a fan of DC since he infused the James Bond role with such great acting. Hearing him say what he did, I’m an even bigger fan now. And interesting how I’m all gaga about him acknowledging the obvious because he is a man- probably some residue from what HumanityDarkside said above.
Yes it is Judi Dench. I don’t watch James Bond so I wasn’t aware of how he was changing things, but I’ve always liked Daniel Craig, So I’m so glad to see him doing this!
The really sad thing is that men NEED to enter the battle for equality for the message to have real value. Not until a man speaks the words that have been spoken previously do those words have weight enough to tip the scales.
Yep, that’s true since we live in a patriarchy (valuing men and masculinity over women and femininity + men mostly holding the positions of power).
So thank God for men like Daniel Craig joining the fight for gender equality.
That was a very powerful video and narration by Judi Dench. They definitely made great efforts for gender equality with the Skyfall promotion, stressing on calling the female characters “Bond women” instead of Bond girls. Craig elsewhere in his career, pre as well as post his Bond casting, hasn’t really played the suave, macho type often, and I like that he brings some of that complexity to his Bond interpretation. I was disappointed with the role that was given to foremost Bond woman Berenice Marlohe in Skyfall, where it ultimately ended up being a damsel in distress scenario, instead of something more complex. In my opinion, Monica Bellucci should have been cast in a Bond film long ago, because she is, after all, Monica Bellucci. Whether she is older or younger, it makes absolutely no difference to the Bond template. She is female sensuality personified.
I haven’t seen Spectre yet, though I do hope the female roles are more complex this time around. I am glad they are making such tonal upgrades to the franchise. A large part of what made the Bond franchise appealing 30 or 40 years ago, isn’t appropriate anymore, not to a character who is otherwise supposed to exhibit gentility.
I really appreciate the work that Daniel Craig has put into creating a more feminist 007!