What do we want from James Bond? He (I’m using the “he/him” pronoun because I’m with Jenna Ortega and think we need more female-led franchises, not merely a gender-swapped “Jamie Bond”) should be cool. Obviously. This is the most important attribute. The guys want to be him, the girls (and guys) want to be with him, etc. He should also be attractive, cunning, intimidating but not too intimidating, and in this modern Bond era, a little emotionally broken.
I’m basically describing Aaron Pierre in Netflix hit Rebel Ridge, which is why I think he should be the next 007.
Written and directed by Jeremy Saulnier (who also made Green Room, one of the best horror movies of the 2010s), Rebel Ridge is about a former Marine named Terry (played by Pierre) who gets stopped by the cops in a small Southern town while riding his bike on the way to post bail for his cousin. They seize the $36,000 in cash he’s carrying via civil forfeiture, under the unjust belief that it was obtained through illegal means. Terry visits the police station, overseen by Chief Sandy Burnne (Don Johnson), and reports that the cash was stolen by his officers. This doesn’t sit well with the cops, so Terry offers a deal: let him have $10,000 back for the bail and they can keep the rest.
This is where I’ll stop describing the plot, because there are some surprises I don’t want to spoil. Besides, this isn’t a straightforward review of Rebel Ridge (if it was, my review would be this: Rebel Ridge rocks). It’s an appreciation of Pierre, who gives the kind of performance that makes you stop the film midway through — one of the few benefits of streaming over the theatrical experience — and see what else he’s been in. He was born in London (another important requirement to playing James Bond) and appeared in a bunch of British shows before making his breakthrough performance in Barry Jenkins’ astonishing The Underground Railroad series. Pierre was also in M. Night Shyamalan’s bonkers Old as Mid-Sized Sedan, a dad joke of a rapper name, and he’ll soon voice Mufasa in Disney prequel Mufasa: The Lion King.
Pierre’s stock is rising, but he’s still a relative unknown — like Daniel Craig when he was cast as Bond. It’s true Craig was in more pre-007 projects than Pierre, but no one was seeing Lara Croft: Tomb Raider or Road to Perdition for the future Benoit Blanc. It wasn’t until Layer Cake (and Elizabeth) that Craig showcased what would make him a great Bond. Rebel Ridge is Pierre’s Layer Cake.
Pierre told Men’s Health that he’s “a student of Brazilian jiu-jitsu and boxing” and “deeply in love with martial arts.” The recent Bond films have played up 007’s martial arts abilities (although it’s been in the character’s DNA since Sean Connery took karate classes), and it’s fair to assume that future titles will favor hand-to-hand combat over goofy gadgets. A balance of the two would be nice (bring back the alligator submarine!), but whichever way Bond 27 goes, Pierre possesses the physicality to pull it off. His 6’3 frame doesn’t hurt, either.
But Pierre is more than just a muscular dude (although he is that). In every interview I’ve read with him, I’m struck by his thoughtfulness for every decision he makes as an actor. Take a look at what he told The Seattle Times about playing Terry: “One of the many things that appealed to me about this character was his ability to regulate his emotions even in moments which are undeniably, blatantly unjust, and intentionally so. He does it in a way that’s so not demonstrative and so not braggadocious that even when he’s articulating how patient he’s being with you, you still might not quite understand.”
Bond is of course in “peak human condition,” as the hilariously detailed James Bond wiki notes, but he’s also someone who relies on his wits to get himself out of seemingly impossible situations. In Rebel Ridge, Pierre plays this well: Terry always looks like he’s five steps ahead of the cops, but even when he’s behind, you wouldn’t know it from his calm demeanor. There’s a rage bubbling underneath, however. When it’s released, look out. This tension between the two could make the next Bond movie more of a tight thriller, which would be a welcome change of pace following the bloat of Spectre and No Time To Die.
So, what are we doing here? Pierre is charismatic, handsome, commanding yet thoughtful, good with a one-liner, and everything he says sounds cool as hell. The search is over: we’ve found our next Bond, James Bond.
Rebel Ridge is streaming now on Netflix.
