No Time To Die’s Lashna Lynch Explains Why Her James Bond Character Is Still ‘Relatable’

Lashana's No Time to Die Poster

The James Bond franchise has been entertaining moviegoing audiences for decades, and Eon productions is showing no signs of slowing down. But No Time to Die will mark Daniel Craig’s final performance as 007, while also introducing a handful of new characters. This includes Lashana Lynch’s Nomi, and the Captain Marvel actress recently explained why her character will still be relatable.

From the limited trailers for No Time to Die, Nomi looks like a thoroughly badass MI6 agent, one worthy of inheriting James Bond’s former monicor 007. Lashana Lynch helped to craft this new character, working alongside co-writer Phoebe Waller-Bridge. Lynch recently spoke about her upcoming Bond debut, saying:

I said, I want her to be a real woman, but I don’t want her work to make her masculine. She’s not slick. She has it together, she’s highly competent and very highly skilled, but she’s a real human being and sometimes she’s awkward. And that’s what is so clever about Phoebe’s writing. Once we’d had a conversation about her possibly being awkward, there were some moments that I read that were just like, ‘Oh no, is she really going to say that in the scene? I’m so here for it! I thought there might be a scene where she’s coming out of the toilet and you see her throw her tampon in the bin. We don’t need to make a meal out of it! But we’re in the ladies’ room, you’re going to see someone pick their nose or pull out their wedgie. Bottom line: this woman is going to be relatable.

Well, I’m certainly intrigued. While fans are most excited to see how Daniel Craig’s tenure as Bond ends in No Time to Die, the various characters making their debut have also piqued interest. Luckily it won’t be long before we finally see how Lashana Lynch’s Nomi will factor into the movie’s story.

Lashana Lynch’s comments to The Guardian help to peel back the curtain on Cary Fukunaga’s highly anticipated James Bond film, No Time to Die. Daniel Craig’s tenure as 007 has seen the franchise embrace serialized storytelling, while the newest installment will feature more independent and badass Bond girls. That definitely includes Nomi, although she’ll also be softened thanks to moments crafted by Lynch and Phoebe Waller-Bridge.

The pressure is on for No Time to Die to deliver, especially given the movie’s numerous delays. The first came when director Danny Boyle departed the project, allowing room for Cary Fukunaga to make his Bond debut. And when Bond 25 was gearing up for its release in 2020, it was pushed back a few more times in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Clearly Daniel Craig’s final bow as James Bond has been a long time coming.

Of course, Lashana Lynch is far from the only notable actress appearing in No Time to Die. The upcoming blockbuster will also feature the return of Léa Seydoux’s Dr. Madeleine Swann, whose story will seemingly be expanded quite a bit. Moviegoers are also eager to see the debut of Knives Out actress Ana de Armas as CIA agent Paloma. And as previously mentioned, Fleabag’s Phoebe Waller-Bridge has brought in to help write the new Bond movies, which was seemingly a great collaborative process for Lynch.

No Time to Die will hit theaters on October 8th. In the meantime, check out the 2021 movie release dates to plan your next movie experience.

Corey Chichizola
Movies Editor

Corey was born and raised in New Jersey. Graduated with degrees theater and literature from Ramapo College of New Jersey. After working in administrative theater for a year in New York, he started as the Weekend Editor at CinemaBlend. He's since been able to work himself up to reviews, phoners, and press junkets-- and is now able to appear on camera with some of his favorite actors... just not as he would have predicted as a kid. He's particularly proud of covering horror franchises like Scream and Halloween, as well as movie musicals like West Side Story. Favorite interviews include Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee, Jamie Lee Curtis, and more.