David Oyelowo Is the First Black James Bond... Kind Of
After months of back and forth, we finally have a Black James Bond. Well, sort of. David Oyelowo has recently been selected to portray the voice of Mr. Bond in an upcoming audio-book version of Trigger Mortis.
According to The Guardian, the Selma star will also voice a slew of other characters in the audio book. "I am officially the only person on planet Earth who can legitimately say: 'I am the new James Bond' — even saying that name is the cinematic equivalent of doing the 'to be or not to be' speech," he said.
Trigger Morris is an official 007 novel that was commissioned by the Fleming estate and written by Anthony Horowitz. This particular book is set in the 1950s, will follow the Soviet-American Space Race and will revive the famous Bond character Pussy Galore. When speaking on the role, Oyelowo said that his particular take on Bond will show "a man who is very self-assured," yet impactful.
This is not Oyelowo's first time playing an iconic character that was known for being non-minority. In the past he played Shakespeare's Henry VI, which brought a slew of racist critics out of the woodwork. "I had to have my agent filter mail... it was hate mail. It was: 'How dare you enter a realm that is not yours to enter?'" he said. "This was over 10 years ago — so you'd hope that wouldn't be the case now."
One can only hope.
Check out David speaking on Black films being told through white eyes in the BET.com video below:
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(Photo: Jonathan Leibson/Getty Images for Variety)
