Could James Bond be black?

This question sparked an online debate when actor Idris Elba addressed speculations that he would be cast as the next British super spy.

Elba confirmed that he will not be the next Bond, but the situation still begs the question, could a nonwhite actor portray Bond?

It’s 2015, a year of progress and I say yes.

For starters, Hollywood has dried the well that is Ian Fleming’s novels.

All the publications have been adapted to the silver screen and the latest film, Spectre, set to release in November, sources material from Bond stories but is not based on any one book.

The cinema industry is now creating original content for the films, so why stick to the character being the same skin color as before? Writers should introduce a new 007 that attracts a wider audience.

In Fleming’s second work, he describes Bond as a white Scotsman, but the character could be adapted to any race or nationality now that we’re in the 21st century. Fleming also penned that Bond has dark hair, but current actor Daniel Craig is blond.

My parents, who emigrated from England and are Bond fanatics, expressed their thoughts to me on the matter.

They put it simply: James Bond is a British icon. Since his portrayal has always been white, he should always stay in the same casting. My mother used Mona Lisa as an analogy: Could the iconic work be painted differently?

While these may be valid arguments against the casting of nonwhite actors, it still doesn’t completely dispel the idea that Bond could be a person of color.

The main problem with having a person of color be the next 007 is the fact that it would be considered as a stand out role.

Elba addressed this in an interview with BBC. “Sean Connery wasn’t the Scottish James Bond, and Daniel Craig wasn’t the blue-eyed James Bond, so if I played him, I don’t want to be called the black James Bond,” he said. Race and nationality should not be the distinguishing factors of the actor.

It’s about performance, and if someone as robust as Elba can characterize the handsome and daring James Bond well, then so be it.

He deserves the part.