Olivia Colman has revealed that there is a very particular character in the James Bond franchise that she has wanted to play for a long time.
In an interview with Vogue, the Oscar-winning actor admitted that the character of M has been on her wishlist for many years.
“The amount of time I have wanted to be M,” she said. “I’m not sure who I need to call.”
When prompted that the best person might be Bond producer Barbara Broccoli, she replied, “I know, I met her once. I wanted to go, ‘Can I be M?’ I must try to be cooler about it.”
The character of M is the Chief of the Secret Intelligence Service in the film series and was played by Judi Dench in seven films, from 1995’s GoldenEye to 2012’s Skyfall, while also returning for a cameo in 2015’s Spectre.
For the last three Bond films, M has been played by Ralph Fiennes.
The producers of the films recently shared that they currently have “no plans” on making the next film at this stage. “There will be another Bond some day, but we’re not actively developing it,” said producer Greg Wilson.
A poll conducted over the summer by William Hill Vegas found that the UK’s top choice for the next James Bond is Idris Elba, just ahead of Tom Hardy and Henry Cavill.
Colman recently revealed that the paparazzi that had been consistently gathering outside her London home had forced her to move out of the city and into the countryside.
“I was scared,” she explained. “At one point, there were two cars chasing us and I was having a sort of meltdown, terrified. I was crying and they were laughing.”
She went on to open up about how she wished she was “braver” when it came to tackling situations where people take photographs of her in the everyday more. “People taking what they think is a sneaky photograph. It’s always obvious, you always know, and it’s awful,” Colman continued.
“Don’t do it. It happened the other day at my kids’ school, a mum took one. You can’t even go: ‘Sorry, don’t do that,’ as then they say, ‘I wasn’t! I didn’t!’ And then you look like a dick. It’s a shame…I wish I was braver but I’m not.”
Colman had her breakthrough in Peep Show before starring in the ITV-crime drama series Broadchurch. She went on to play Queen Elizabeth in The Crown and Queen Anne in The Favourite, which she earned an Academy Award for Best Actress in 2019.
Colman will next appear in Wonka, in cinemas from 8 December.