Are We Ready for a Bisexual James Bond?

As most of the Internet has heard by now, Daniel Craig, the latest actor to take up the role of James Bond, is, in a story reported by World Entertainment News Network, advocating that the Bond franchised be revolutionized by including men, as well as women, among James Bond’s many conquests.  Predictably this has spawned squeals of glee and squawks of horror all over cyberspace.

As a long-time James Bond fan, I think Daniel Craig is absolutely right and applaud him speaking his mind on the issue.  I think the world is ready for a queer, bisexual or omnivorous (choose your favorite word) James Bond, not for any reasons of political correctness or gay advocacy, but because I believe it actually makes sense for the character.  I also believe that those objecting to some male on male action for James Bond are objecting mainly because they assume this would feminize the character or otherwise detract from the fictional super-spy’s reputation for getting any girl he wants. 

So, here are my five reasons why I support Daniel Craig’s view on the future of the James Bond franchise.

1. James Bond is many things, including his sex drive.  Let’s face it, one of the reasons we love James Bond is because he’s oversexed.  With that in mind, do you really think James Bond would turn down the offer of a sexual favor if it got him what he wanted – whether that’s one step closer to the villain or just a bit of pleasurable distraction?  I don’t.
2. On a related note, James Bond is a daredevil and risk taker.  He’s not just the sort of character that will try anything once, but the sort of character who will try anything twice, to make sure he wasn’t wrong about his initial opinion on the matter.
3. James Bond has always liked his women tough.  He’s as often about fighting with them as rescuing them.  Why should that trope of violent chemistry only turn sexual with female characters?
4. As I said earlier, James Bond always gets his woman.  Here’s a secret (that really shouldn’t be one!) for you straight male readers.  As much as men are turned on by hot lesbian action (I cannot believe I just felt the need to use that phrase in an article) women who are attracted to men are, by and large , turned on by the male equivalent.  Yes, I’m saying that James Bond could easily use the seduction of a man to seduce a woman.
5. After years of the queer villain trope and then even more tedious years of nice, non-threatening, asexual, tedious queerness on sitcoms and in romantic comedies, it’s time for a queer character that is sexy, powerful and morally grey (after all, James Bond may work for the good guys, but he has to do some pretty bad things in their service).

Daniel Craig is just the actor to bring this new, earthier and omnivorously sexual James Bond to the screen.  Arguably, Daniel Craig’s portrayal of James Bond in Casino Royale is more masculine than any Bond that has come before him (with the possible exception of Sean Connery), meaning that all the worry about a fling with a man feminizing the Bond character isn't just offensive, but silly.  Daniel Craig’s portrayal of James Bond is also in many ways darker than what we’ve seen on screen before – he has emotions, and inner-conflict, he flies off the handle, gets over-involved in his job and loves what he does, even when it unsettles him, sometimes deeply.  This is a James Bond I think we can easily believe in as breaking all the rules – including those for hyper-masculine fictional characters.