The 2005 racism scandal that rocked James Bond: “I think it’s a rather below the belt allegation”
In addition to being one of the most iconic film characters to appear on the silver screen, James Bond has also become something of a culture way issue in recent years, with the race, nationality, and even hair colour of potential Bond actors argued over at length for reasons that have never been entirely clear.
Typically, the argument that arises whenever a Black actor, in particular, is floated as a potential future James Bond is that it would go against the accuracy of the original novels. This is, of course, a ridiculous suggestion, for a number of reasons. It is worth noting, immediately, that James Bond has never been represented in the film franchise in a way that is entirely faithful to Ian Fleming’s novels, in which one of Bond’s only identifiable features is a facial scar that has never appeared in the films. Bond’s race is never, in any overt sense, referenced by Fleming, either.
As for nationality, a number of non-British actors have already portrayed Bond in one form or another. In fact, the very first actor to portray the character on screen was the American Barry Nelson, in a version of Casino Royale made for CBS’s Climax! series. Nevertheless, the typically right-wing culture war argument is that James Bond should exclusively be portrayed as white, British, and male.
Hence, during the early 2000s, when Pierce Brosnan was coming to the end of his run as Bond and the Black British actor Colin Salmon was among the names rumoured to be his replacement, a rather vicious debate was sparked. The rumours were notably championed by Brosnan himself, who viewed Salmon as his perfect replacement.
“I have played Bond loads of times at the screen tests, as it was my job to audition girls and play the part of Bond,” Salmon shared at the time, per The Resident. “He [Brosnan] has seen this, which is why he keeps putting my name forward.”
What’s more, Salmon was already a part of the Bond universe as the character of Mi6 aide Charles Robinson, who appeared in three Brosnan-era films, so he was already familiar with the realm of the franchise, surely making him a shoo-in for the role. In the end, though, it was Daniel Craig who was plucked to be the next James Bond and, to add insult to injury, Charles Robinson was scrapped for Craig’s inaugural appearance in Casino Royale.
Following the snub, Salmon made no attempt to hide what he saw as a racially-motivated injustice. “It’s a shame I didn’t get the part,” he said at the time. “But there will never be a black Bond. God, they can’t even have a blond Bond without everyone going crazy.”
What’s more, he rejected the idea that his character couldn’t be carried over into this new era for Bond, particularly given that Judi Dench stayed on board as M, saying, “It makes no sense. They’ve got rid of Q, Miss Moneypenny, yet they keep Dench in it. It’s confusing.”
In response, a spokesperson from the production company EON, who were responsible for the franchise at the time, rejected all accusations of Salmon’s snub being racially motivated. “I think it’s a rather below the belt allegation and I can’t believe Colin has suggested it,” she said, adding, “Since it wasn’t impossible for there to be a blond Bond, then it’s not impossible for there to be a Black Bond.”
Yet, here we are 20 years later, and the world doesn’t appear to be any closer to seeing a Black actor portray James Bond on-screen. During Daniel Craig’s tenure, when any suggestion of the likes of Idris Elba, John Boyega, or any other Black actor stepping into those shoes was merely suggested, the architects of the culture war debate would invariably incite outrage. Perhaps, therefore, Salmon wasn’t so far off the mark when it came to his 2006 comments.
