Bond 25 villain Rami Malek is unconcerned by all the rumours that the latest 007 outing is facing going through a bit of a tough spot with the crew.
In a recent interview with Digital Spy, Malek has shed some light on the role he will be playing as the new Bond villain. He has said that he refused to let the character identiy with a particular “religion or ideology”.
So does that mean he’s putting the foot down when it comes to the villain being a stereotypically cast Muslim/ Middle Eastern terrorist? Hollywood has for decades racially stereotyped the Middle East as terrorists and Islamic fundamentalists for their on-screen villains. In 2016, even President Obama highlighted the problem saying: “our TV shows should have Muslim characters that are unrelated to national security”. Iron Man, Bodyguard, Homeland and 24 are just some of the shows and movies that racially and ethnically stereotype Arabs as the bad guys on the big screen.
So Rami Malek’s recent quote implies that he will not go down a similar road.
“Another thing that I discussed with Cary; I said we cannot identify him with any act of terrorism reflecting an ideology or a religion. That’s not something I would entertain, so if that is why I am your choice then you can count me out. But that was clearly not his vision.”
Due to Daniel Craig’s recent injuries however the Oscar winner is yet to film with the Bond star. While the actor remained tight-lipped on the nature of the scenes he’s already filmed for the movie, he admitted to Digital Spy that Daniel Craig was not present during his own recent Norway shoot for Bond 25.
“I haven’t shot with Daniel yet, but I’m thrilled to work with him,” he said.
“But the thing is, Daniel was injured, so they are shooting what they can. I talked to Cary yesterday and the schedule has been altered.”
“I haven’t shot with Daniel yet, but I’m thrilled to work with him,” he added. “Daniel is an actor I greatly admire. Over the years, I think he’s put in such phenomenal performances. I found him so captivating in films like Layer Cake and, of course, the Bond films. This is another moment where I find myself pinching myself.”
The movie has been rife with rumours, from the director Cary Fukunaga missing a work day because of his PS4 antics to the crew being close to mutiny, it hasn’t been easy for the Bond 25 movie.
However, putting those rumours to rest, Malek said: “I know that. But with a franchise like this, I think they have it together. They have it figured out by now.”
Will the new movie come out as scheduled in April 2020? We definitely hope so.
