Reacher’s Maria Sten Is Giving Me An Idea Of What A Female James Bond Might Be Like, And Honestly, I Don't Hate It

The future of the James Bond franchise finally appears to be back on track. After a few years in limbo, the next Bond film has producers, a writer, and a director in Denis Villeneuve. The only major thing it's missing now is an actor to play the role. And while all signs point to the eventual casting decision being well, a guy, Reacher’s Maia Sten is making me wonder if a female James Bond isn’t the way to go after all.

Sten, who will next be seen in Neagley, a spinoff of the popular Reacher series, recently posted some images on Instagram that show her in a formal dress, with a martini, and even a cigarette. If you were curious what a female James Bond would even look like, I’m pretty sure it looks like this.

While it’s unclear if Sten’s cocktail is “shaken” or “stirred,” it’s certainly stirring in me a desire to see more of this. Sten has certainly shown her capabilities in action; I’m not saying that we should get a female James Bond, but I am saying that if there were plans for one we could certainly do a lot worse.

Following the confirmation that Daniel Craig would be leaving the role of James Bond following his most recent outing, the conversation of who would be the next James Bond began in earnest. There have not been inconsequential voices calling for a major change to the status quo, including potentially changing Bond’s race or even his gender.

EON Productions Barbara Broccoli had previously stated that while Bond’s race could change, his gender would not. However, with Amazon recently taking over creative control of the Bond franchise, she no longer has final say on that decision. While it’s certainly still unlikely the next James Bond movie could star a woman, it is perhaps theoretically more possible now.

There have been so many names floating around as a potential James Bond that it’s nearly impossible to keep track of them all. Since we knew that Craig was stepping down long before No Time to Die ever came out, the discussion about his replacement has been going on for a very long time. And while it’s been rumored that the plan is for the character to skew very young, with Tom Holland one name that’s been thrown around recently, really anything could happen.

While it’s still fairly unlikely that James Bond will be a woman, Maria Sten has done more to turn me on to the idea in these few images than anything else I’ve seen. If this is even a taste of what we’re going to get when the Neagley series debuts, then I will certainly be paying attention. Maybe she already is the female James Bond.