Brian Cox Compares James Bond To Shakespeare, Defends Character From Being Canceled

“We don’t muck around with Shakespeare,” said Brian Cox, “we shouldn’t muck around with James Bond.” While Cox is perfectly within his rights to compare some of the most important works in the English language with a film series where characters have names like “Pussy Galore” and “Oddjob,” we can’t help but wonder if he’s overselling the importance of Bond.

Brian Cox went on to imply that if more people watched the old James Bond films and really studied their outdated themes of misogyny, toxic masculinity, and casual racism, then the world wouldn’t have to worry about Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin.

Cox didn’t really explain in-depth how showing kids Goldfinger in school would prevent fascist dictators, but he did express his approval of content warnings as an alternative to censorship, so that’s nice. Cox isn’t the only one who’s pushed back against the idea of a more “woke” Bond.

The misogynistic James Bond character has faced years of scrutiny over whether he has a place in polite society as is. Efforts to make James Bond more PC are nothing new, and surely, Brian Cox and Henry Bolton know this. Bond was being called a “dinosaur” by a newly female M as early as 1995 when GoldenEye was released. Recently, efforts have been made to convince MGM to cast a person of color in the role of Bond, a woman, or both.

The effort to modernize and diversify Bond has been met with the typical anti-woke pushback. The same corner of the internet that doesn’t think a woman should be good at the Force and doesn’t want a black Doctor Who is typically the same corner of the internet that heavily opposes any changes to James Bond.

Brian Cox has James Bond on the brain because he was chosen as the host of a new Amazon Prime reality series, 007: Road To A Million. The series will feature nine pairs of contestants who “must face Bond-inspired challenges from across the globe, “ as described by the show’s synopsis. Brian Cox is “The Controller,” whose job it is to hide 10 questions around the world for the nine pairs of contestants to find.

Each question is worth more money than the last, with a grand prize of a “substantial seven-figure prize” waiting for the pair that successfully beats all of the challenges set forth by Brian Cox’s Controller. Given Cox’s love of the classic Bond aesthetic, we really hope the challenges aren’t just drinking and gambling.