There have been some truly memorable villains in the nearly sixty year history of the James Bond cinematic franchise, some nearly as famous as the secret agent himself. Rami Malek (Mr. Robot) will be taking on the main villain role in Cary Fukunaga's BOND 25, but the actor had one condition before he would agreed to appear in the upcoming film.
"It’s a great character and I’m very excited. But that was one 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,'" Malek said while speaking with The Mirror recently. "But that was clearly not his vision. So he’s a very different kind of terrorist. It’s another extremely clever script from the people who have figured out exactly what people want in those movies. But I feel a substantial weight on my shoulders. I mean, Bond is something that we all grow up with." As so many villains lean on their ideology at expense of character, I can't blame Rami Malek for making this stipulation. Here's hoping we can add Malek's character to the ranks of all-time great Bond villains.
Starring Daniel Craig, Rami Malek, Ralph Fiennes, Naomie Harris, Rory Kinnear, Léa Seydoux, Ben Whishaw, Ana de Armas, and more, BOND 25 will find the secret agent having left active service and enjoying a tranquil life in Jamaica. "His peace is short-lived when his old friend Felix Leiter from the CIA turns up asking for help. The mission to rescue a kidnapped scientist turns out to be far more treacherous than expected, leading Bond onto the trail of a mysterious villain armed with dangerous new technology." BOND 25 is slated for an April 3, 2020 release in the U.K.