A Female James Bond Was Considered Before Sean Connery Was Cast As 007

If you’ve never heard of Susan Hayward, then you’re probably not much of a Hollywood historian. She began her onscreen acting career in the late 1930s but started to take off about a decade later with the 1947 film «Smash-Up: The Story of a Woman,» for which she earned her first of five Academy Award nominations in the best actress category. Her other nominations came in 1950 for «My Foolish Heart,» 1953 for «With a Song in My Heart,» and 1956 for «I’ll Cry Tomorrow.» The fifth time wound being the charm for Hayward, who finally won the coveted award in 1959 for her turn in «I Want to Live!»

In that Oscar-winning performance, Hayward plays real-life convicted murderer Barbara Graham. It’s the kind of gritty, complex character that defined the star’s career. Hayward’s incredible Academy Award run through the late ’40s and ’50s led right up to the release of «Dr. No» in 1962, so it makes perfect sense why she would have been considered as a female James Bond at the time.

Since then, the idea of a female James Bond has never really gained studio traction again, though Lashana Lynch’s Nomi character took on the 007 agent number in «No Time to Die.» Had Hayward been cast, we’d be having a very different conversation today about who could or couldn’t play James Bond.