James Bond will be replaced as 007 in No Time To Die – but it's not what fans might think. The upcoming Bond film from director Cary Joji Fukunaga will be the last for Daniel Craig, and the studio has yet to announce a replacement. The question of who that may be has been the subject of wild speculation, and it didn't help when news leaked that British actress Lashana Lynch would be replacing Craig as 007 in the upcoming film. However, while reports have confirmed that Lynch's character will get the 007 title, she will not be the new Bond – and she won't be in future films, either.
The internet lost its mind last summer when a source told the Daily Mail that Lynch would be the new 007 in the upcoming film. The source made clear that she would not be the new Bond – Daniel Craig would still play the title character, and Lynch would just be taking over his secret agent number – but that didn't stop a torrent of speculation as to whether she would be the next Bond when Craig moved on. At the time, everyone assumed the news meant the next Bond would be a woman of color, which led to an ugly spate of racist and sexist backlash.
The No Time To Die trailer cleared up rumors that "Lady Bond" would be a thing in the next film. Craig and Lynch are in the trailer together, and the footage confirmed that Lynch's character, Nomi, was a MI6 agent with a 00-number – and not Bond himself. Bond has apparently retired from active service, and when he is called back into action, he finds that Nomi took his place. All signs point to the theory of her being 007 being true, although Lynch has yet to confirm it herself.
However, one thing is for sure: she is not going to be the next James Bond. It's confirmed she exists with Bond inside the same universe, and plays a character all her own. It would make very little sense to bring her back for future films, then change her name. It might make sense to have her star in a 007 film within the Bond universe – maybe if Bond dies at the end of No Time To Die – but if that were to happen, her name would likely still be Nomi.
The idea of a female James Bond is certainly not as far off as it might have been. Traditionally, the Bond franchise has treated women more like sex objects and disposable pieces of arm candy than actual characters. But changing that has reportedly been a huge focus of the team behind No Time To Die. They brought Fleabag creator Phoebe Waller-Bridge in to punch up the script, and both Fukunaga and producer Barbara Broccoli have said that making more fully realized female characters has been a point of emphasis. The new Bond girl, played by Ana de Armas, will not be the traditional "femme fatale" of the past, either. It's not fully out of the question to see a female James Bond in the future, but unless there is a massive change of plans, it won't be Lashana Lynch.
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