Sebastian Faulks: Attempts to make James Bond thoughtful just made him ‘slightly gay’
James Bond writer, Sebastian Faulks, has said that his attempts to make the the character more sensitive or introspective failed, and that he just ended up being “slightly gay”.
He also heavily criticised the latest Bond film, Skyfall, saying that it tried to make the title character sensitive but “that’s not how it works”.
The writer of the a recent James Bond novel, Devil May Care, released in 2008, said that he tried to give the spy an introspective, thoughtful side, but that it didn’t work out.
He said: “I thought I would invest him with some serious thoughts. It didn’t work. It was unconvincing. It made him look not thoughtful but slightly gay.”
He went on to say that a greater interest in books, and reading, could have indicated that, but that in the Bond cartoons, he is only ever seen reading once, and his book of choice is a Guide to Modern Golf.
Talking about Skyfall, the writer was very critical, saying that attempts to give a deeper, more emotional side weren’t successful, reports the Telegraph.
“The films’ attempts to show a deeper and sensitive side to James Bond have not been successful because that’s not how he works. He doesn’t have much of an inner life and when you try to give him one the whole thing stalls,”
He went on to criticise the acting in Skyfall, and said that he thought some themes in the film were handled “distastefully”.
Mr Faulks said: “I found the last film pretty distasteful. One [of the Bond girls] couldn’t act and the other had been previously exploited as a sex worker. And Bond walks into the shower and makes love to her. Casino Royale was much better.”
Devil May Care was commissioned by the estate of the late Ian Fleming, who created the character, became an instant bestseller, and was commended by critics as one of the best Bond sequels written so far.
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