The dark truth behind the ‘Bond Girl Curse’: Why playing 007’s lover could ruin your career-Brooke Ivey Johnson-Entertainment – Metro

Is there any truth to the Bond Girl Curse? (Picture: Getty Images)

Few movie franchises have a legacy as complex as the James Bond films – and the recurring trope of the Bond Girl remains one of the most challenging aspects to grapple with.

This is made all the more true by the added spectre of the ‘Bond Girl Curse,’ which has haunted the franchise since its inception, hanging over the heads of the many actresses who have played the super spy’s romantic interests. 

Rumours of a curse affecting anyone who plays a romantic interest in a James Bond film have persisted, even as more big-name actresses – rather than the lesser-known stars of earlier films – take on these roles.

But now, as we prepare for a new actor to take over the role of 007 and consider how James Bond fits into our changing culture, it’s time to dig into one of the most pervasive myths in film history. 

What is the Bond Girl Curse?

The Bond Girl Curse is a prevalent belief in Hollywood that accepting a part as a romantic female lead in a James Bond film is a surefire way to stall your career.

For years actresses hesitated to take roles as Bond Girls for fear of falling victim to the curse (Picture: Danjaq/Eon/Ua/Kobal/Shutterstock)

But the myth is subtler and more spectral than just a trend of damaged careers, with many associating the often grim fates of Bond’s romantic interests with real-life misfortune. 

In short, the idea is that once someone becomes a Bond Girl, she’s stuck with that identity – and the bad luck her character faces might follow her into real life.

Tanya Roberts, for example, has said that after starring in A View to Kill in 1985 across from Roger Moore, she was never offered another leading role, believing she was perpetually reduced to an accessory to a leading man rather than a leading woman unto herself. 

In a 2015 interview, she said: ‘I sort of felt like every girl who’d ever been a Bond Girl had seen their career go nowhere, so I was a little cautious.

Halle Berry is a notable exception to the Bond Girl Curse (Picture: Moviestore/Shutterstock)

‘I remember I said to my agent: “No one ever works after they get a Bond movie.” And they said to me: “Are you kidding? Glen Close would do it if she could.”’

Unfortunately, given how relatively uneventful Roberts’s career was after her turn as a Bond girl, it seems she may have been right after all. 

Lois Chiles is also frequently mentioned as an example of the phenomenon. After the actress played Holly Goodhead in 1979’s Moonraker, her brother died suddenly, leading her to take time off from acting, after which her career never recovered. 

Many have long believed that playing a Bond Girl dooms an actresses career (Picture: Danjaq/Eon/Ua/Kobal/Shutterstock)

At one point, belief in the curse was so strong that the franchise reportedly struggled to cast a female lead. According to 007 Wiki, the making of both Die Another Day and Casino Royale were stalled after the production team struggled to find a quality actress willing to take the part.

Eventually, Eva Green’s agent had to persuade her to take the role of Vesper Lynd in Die Another Day, as she had concerns that her career would take a hit as a result.

How did the myth of the Bond Girl Curse begin?

Those who were around when the iconic Bond film Gold Finger came out in 1964 may remember that the film was not only a box office hit, but also created a popular urban legend. 

In one of the film’s most iconic moments, Jill Masterson (played by Shirley Eaton) is painted entirely in gold, causing her to die of ‘skin asphyxiation.’ 

It’s possible that an urban legend about Shirley Eaton gave raise to the Bond Girl Curse myth (Picture: Getty Images)

While skin asphyxiation is just as fictional as much of the Bond universe, many people really believed that not only was this death possible, but that Shirley Eaton died of the affliction while filming. 

Eaton stopped acting after the film, which likely influenced the rumour.

The kind of myth that could only flourish in a pre-internet era, this belief became so widespread that many began saying that anyone who played the role of a Bond Girl in the future would meet a similarly ghastly, comic-book fate. 

It seems that over the years this urban legend morphed into the Bond Girl Curse as we know it today. 

The real reason for the Bond Girl Curse 

While 007 himself has changed over the years, the women he seduces (and occasionally even loves) have remained mostly consistent: Beautiful, seductive, thin, and disposable.

More than she’s anything else, a Bond girl is more a fantasy of a woman than a real person, making it almost impossible to bring something meaningful to the role. 

Director John Glen, who directed five Bond films, once said: ‘Being a Bond girl is a very difficult task and I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone.’

Lois Chiles, who starred opposite Roger Moore in Moonraker, is often used as an example of the curse
(Picture: Danjaq/Eon/Ua/Kobal/Shutterstock)

In reality, the curse so many actresses associated with the franchise isn’t anything supernatural, it’s a reflection of the role itself. 

A Bond Girl is often treated more as a prop than a fully developed character, reducing the actress to a sex symbol. This portrayal makes it challenging for her to be taken seriously in a misogynistic culture, limiting her future opportunities.

In a 1999 Vanity Fair article, Bruce Feirstein reflected on his time working on the Bond franchise in the early 90s, remembering being handed a guide to creating a Bond Girl. 

Eva Green reportedly hesitated to take the role of a Bond Girl because of the curse (Picture: Diego Azubel/EPA/Shutterstock)

He wrote that the document, ‘detailed the four basic “Bond Girl” archetypes: the Angel with a Wing Down, an otherwise innocent woman (somehow connected to the villain) whom Bond usually saves; the Naive Beauty, an innocent woman caught up in the plot by accident, whom Bond always saves; the Comrade in Arms, a competent woman with whom Bond reluctantly joins forces and is then forced to save; and the Villainous Vixen, a truly insane woman whom Bond sleeps with but never saves.’

So its more than fair to say that the legacy of Bond Girls is a study in sexist archetyping – literally. 

Now, as James Bond prepares to return with an all-new actor in an all-new era, is the Bond Girl Curse alive and well, or is it a relic of a time when Pussy Galore was a tasteful euphemism? 

What is the future of the Bond Girl?

Even if its been painfully slow, there has been some shifts in modern Bond Girl roles. 

In recent years, many Bond actresses have gone on to achieve even greater success, both in and outside of the film industry.

This shift directly correlated with the early 2000s, when Bond films began to make at least minor attempts at bestowing personhood on their female characters.

Michelle Yeoh thoroughly broke the Bond Girl Curse with her excellent career (Picture: Moviestore/Shutterstock)

Three former Bond Girls – Kim Basinger, Halle Berry, and Michelle Yeoh – have notably won Academy Awards. Michelle Yeoh, in particular, made history at the Oscars by winning Best Actress for her role in Everything Everywhere All At Once, a milestone that was announced by Halle Berry, herself a Best Actress winner and a former Bond Girl.

While the earlier films often reduced these characters to mere sex symbols, the Daniel Craig era introduced more complex, capable, and modernized female roles – even if they were still largely plot tools – making it possible for actresses to continue to be taken seriously after playing Bond Girls.

Even Judi Dench was killed out in a Bond film (Picture: Getty/Shutterstock)

Kim Bassinger went on to win an Oscar after playing a Bond Girl (Picture: Warner Bros/Kobal/Shutterstock)

Actresses like Naomie Harris, Ana de Armas, and Lashana Lynch have portrayed Bond women who are not only intelligent and resourceful but also at least relevant to the plot, rather than mere romantic interests.

However, it’s crucial to acknowledge that the Bond Girl Curse isn’t entirely fiction.

Historically, the franchise has not shied away from using the deaths of female characters to add emotional weight to Bond’s backstory. 

From Plenty O’Toole being thrown from a window in Diamonds Are Forever (1971) to Miss Fields’ tragic end in Quantum of Solace (2008), these scenes have become as much a part of the Bond mystique as the living, breathing Bond Girls themselves. 

Even Judi Dench’s M wasn’t immune, as her character was conveniently killed off in Skyfall (2012), transforming her into yet another piece of Bond’s tragic history.

Denise Richards is among recent Bond Girl’s to add more substance to her character (Picture: Danjaq/Eon/Ua/Kobal/Shutterstock)

It’s hard to view a Bond Girl as a leading role when, more often than not, she lacks her own character development and serves primarily as a catalyst for the male lead’s growth.

The moniker of Bond Girl itself, as iconic as it is, reduces whoever ends up in the role to a caricature that is defined by its relationship to a man.

So while playing a female romantic interest in a Bond film is no longer a death knell for a career, it’s not exactly an opportunity to showcase one’s talent, either.

And even as Bond girl’s evolve, there’s still the objectifying legacy of the role’s predecessors hanging over the heads of every actress to take on the role.

In the end, the real curse has not been the Bond Girl role itself but the industry’s long-standing issues with misogyny, ageism, and typecasting – issues that continue to plague the James Bond franchise.

Hopefully, 007’s next era will include real, dynamic female parts and the curse will be broken once and for all.

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