James Bond 'Spectre' Release Date: Monica Bellucci Insists She's a 'Bond Woman,' Not a 'Bond Girl'
Italian actress Monica Bellucci, who will go down in history as the oldest Bond Girl, insists she be called "Bond Woman," not "Bond Girl" for her role in "Spectre" that's hitting theaters this winter.
Monica Bellucci, whose smoldering gaze and great figure wowed audiences in "The Matrix" films, will become one of the oldest James Bond leading ladies when she takes over the big screen with co-stars Daniel Craig and Lea Seydoux in "Spectre," due out in Nov. 6.
Bellucci has stressed, however, that she be called "Bond Woman" and not "Bond Girl."
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When she initially got the call from director Sam Mendes, she thought she was being cast to replace Dame Judi Dench in her role as "M."
"I just blurted out: I'm not a girl, I'm a woman. I'm a mature woman," the 50-year-old actress explained in an interview with The Daily Mail. "'Why do you call me? I'm 50 years old. What am I going to do in James Bond?' Do I have to replace Judi Dench?"
Unbeknownst to Bellucci, who did not follow the Bond films, Dench was killed off in the previous film, "Skyfall," and her role taken over by Ralph Fiennes, initially introduced as Intelligence and Security Committee Chairman Gareth Mallory.
Bellucci, who played Mary Magdalene in the critically acclaimed "The Passion of the Christ," further praised Mendes as being a hero for ushering in the revolutionary concept of casting a mature actress in a leading role for a Bond film, taking the stand for older female thespians.
Bellucci, who eclipsed Honor Blackman's record as the oldest Bond actress – the latter starred 1964's "Goldfinger" at age 39 -- is only four years older than leading man Daniel Craig.
According to leaked emails from Sony executive Amy Pascal, "Thor" actor Idris Elba is being considered as the next candidate to play 007.
