Words by Nicole Collins
In a recent interview with GQ, British actress Lashana Lynch talks Marvel, Bond and the discrimination still rife in her industry.
“You can make Bond a black man – I’d love to see Idris Elba take over from [Daniel] Craig – or any other ethnic-persuasion man for that matter, but you can’t make him a woman.” This cyber-troll comment practically leaps off the page in Lashana Lynch’s recent interview with GQ. Lynch is a woman battling white supremacism projected at her from every established movie franchise she joins. Furthermore, her latest role in the newest 007 Bond Franchise, No Time to Die as Nomi, has caused great patriarchal tension with devoted, die-hard fans. For Lynch, the uproar came as trivial, as if it were expected. The question is – why should black actors have to normalise racial stigma or accept anything less than the support otherwise showered upon a white actor in the role?
For the last eight years, Lashana Lynch has drifted from television screens to theatre stages, starring as Rosaline Capulet in short-lived period drama Still Star-Crossed and Rita in the Chichester Festival Theatre production of Educating Rita. It wasn’t until 2019 that Lynch truly got the ball rolling with her stand-out role as fighter pilot Maria Rambeau in Marvel’s billion-dollar action flick, Captain Marvel. In the GQ interview, Lynch recalls a time on the set of Still Star Crossed where she informed her castmates of her ambitious aim of becoming a Marvel superhero role. Her co-workers didn’t seem particularly convinced or hopeful with her abilities, but Lynch was confident: “You guys don’t know me”, she stated, “if I say I want to walk through this wall, then I’m probably going to do it within about two years.”
Lynch radiates ‘female boss’ energy on and off-screen: starring alongside Brie Larson in the fifth highest-grossing film of 2019 is a good way of proving to her castmates that they were wrong about her. After the enormous success of Captain Marvel, Lynch decided to ease herself away from the world of movie franchises and turned to the theatre once more, starring as Debbie Tucker in a London play, Ear for Eye. Barbara Broccoli, co-head of Eon Productions – the British film production company known for producing the James Bond series – was amongst the play’s producers. Lynch explains to GQ that one day Broccoli invited her to tape for an undisclosed role. While taping, Lynch was oblivious to the magnitude of the role, one which would greatly impact her career.
In July 2019, it was announced that Lynch would star in the new Bond film, No Time to Die, as Nomi. At the time, the announcement was met with angered commotion from fans. No one wanted to see a woman have a significant, warrior type role within the film – let alone a black woman. Lynch, seemingly unaffected by the Twitter bashing, laughed off the hate, stating she was “imagining these weird-looking actual trolls with blue hair… on their computers, typing away.” She continues, “for me, none of it is real.” While Lashana appeared relatively unbothered by the hate, she does point out that “white patriarchy will always have something to say when it comes to things like that.”
Her nonchalance towards the discrimination she faced highlights the routine normalcy of everyday racism and sexism within the film industry. It is seen countlessly in large movie franchises: GQ highlight John Boyega’s experience in the Star Wars franchise, but it has also been seen in the controversy surrounding the casting of black actors in the Twilight series and now in the Bond series. When people claim they aren’t racist or sexist, but practice every day prejudice and misogyny, it institutionalises a reality where white people (men in particular) are favoured before any other demographic. Black actors, such as Lynch, are an example of a minority forced to tolerate systematic racism to maintain their livelihood.
This point is further emphasised in Lynch’s interview where she speaks on her frustrations with the over-celebration of her casting. She says, “the fact you have to celebrate it… like black people just arrived on the planet.” She continues, “For my community, those are really big things, but for the world, I need you to not care about it.” To Lynch, black actors starring in predominately white casted films needs to be normalised.
Lashana proves her worth and stature as a black woman in both Captain Marvel and No Time to Die. Geeking out to GQ, she discusses the behind-the-scenes of her new role. She was the first person the stunt team had worked with who didn’t pick up any injuries. On camera, she appears dominant and strong, even telling Bond to “Stay in [his] lane.”
Lashana is proving herself capable and worthy of her roles in some of the world’s largest and most revered film franchises. Audiences wait curiously to see what Lynch brings to No Time to Die as Nomi – the first major black female character in the series.
Read how the 2020 GQ awards highlighted the contributions of Black British stars.