Daniel Craig Responds Brilliantly To Ageist Monica Bellucci Comments

The actor challenged an interviewer on his remarks over his apparently 'older' love interest in the film Spectre

James Bond has never had to worry when it comes to the ladies but as fans of the film franchise will know, his love interests are always much younger than he is.

However in the 24th Bond outing, Spectre, that's all set to change with Daniel Craig reprising the role of the lothario spy who this time around is romanced by the stunningly beautiful Monica Bellucci, an Italian actress who is - shock, horror – a whole four years older than he is.

When Craig was asked how he felt about Bond ‘succumbing to the charms of an older women’ in a recent interview with RedBulletin magazine (why that was even a question we’re not quite sure) he wasted no time in spectacularly calling out the interviewer on his woefully sexist and ageist line of questioning: 

‘I think you mean the charms of a woman his own age’ he replied.

‘We're talking about Monica Bellucci, for heaven's sake,' he continued. 'When someone like that wants to be a Bond girl, you just count yourself lucky!’ 

Erm, can we get a round of applause for the best Bond ever?

In the same interview, the English actor (who is – arguably – as well known for his outspoken opinions as he is for his on-screen moments) also went on to call his most famous character a ‘misogynist’.

His comments follow that of Craig's co-star Naomie Harris, who plays the role of Eve Moneypenny this time around and who recently voiced her disapproval on the term 'Bond girl'. Speaking to The Independent she said: 'Monica is 50 and it's respectable to say she's a Bond woman. It's quite demeaning to call her a girl. So I think it's time we had a little change there'. And let's hope attitudes towards female actors will change.

Whilst Craig and Harris undoubtedly deserve our applause for calling out the double standards that are at play when it comes to casting female roles in Hollywood, they aren't the only ones to cast light on the issue in recent months. Anne Hathaway, Helen Mirren and Maggie Gyllenhaal have all spoken out about sexism and ageism within Hollywood, with Maggie saying that at age 37 she was told that she was ‘too old; to play the love interest of a male actor who was 55.’

How ridiculous is that?

And it seems that while male actors are allowed to age gracefully on screen, their female counterparts aren't granted the same privilege. But when big-name movers and shakers in the industry, like Daniel Craig, Anne Hathaway etc also speak up in support of change in the industry it makes us think that things could improve for women in Hollywood, but something tells that such change might yet be a while off…