Lashana Lynch praises 'No Time to Die' director for making sure her character wasn't just 'standing behind the white guy'

• Lynch said director Cary Joji Fukunaga made sure her character wasn't one-dimensional.
• "I didn't feel like Nomi, as a young Black woman, was constantly standing behind the white guy," she said.
• Lynch plays Nomi, the first-ever female Black 00 agent in the James Bond franchise.

It's been a long time coming, but in the 25th James Bond movie, "No Time to Die," we get to see a Black female 00 agent.

Lashana Lynch ("Captain Marvel") locked down the role of Nomi, who gains her license to kill following the retirement of James Bond (Daniel Craig) after the events of 2015's "Spectre."

Looking back on the crafting of the character, Lynch praised the work of "No Time to Die" director Cary Joji Fukunaga, franchise producer Barbara Broccoli, and Craig for making sure all the female characters in the movie were not one dimensional. Along with Lynch the female cast in the movie also includes Léa Seydoux, Ana de Armas, and Naomie Harris.

"Cary had big discussions with Barbara and Daniel about how to give the female characters equity, how to keep them in charge of themselves, how to give them solo moments where the audience learns who they are," Lynch told The Hollywood Reporter.

And the British actress feels particularly proud in the attention Fukunaga put towards Nomi onscreen.

"I didn't feel like Nomi, as a young Black woman, was constantly standing behind the white guy, which, for me, is job done," she said. "And that was a very conscious decision for Cary."

To say the Nomi character is revolutionary in the white male-focused Bond franchise would be an understatement. And Lynch learned that quickly last year when the reveal of who she was playing in "No Time to Die" led to backlash on social media from people, who were not ready to see a Black female 00 agent.

According to a Harper's Bazaar profile that ran last November, once the backlash hit, Lynch deleted her social media accounts and found comfort by spending most of her time with her family.

"I am one Black woman - if it were another Black woman cast in the role, it would have been the same conversation, she would have got the same attacks, the same abuse," Lynch said. "I just have to remind myself that the conversation is happening and that I'm a part of something that will be very, very revolutionary."

Back then, Lynch also shared why she was proud to step into the revolutionary role that proved authentic to her experience as a Black woman.

"I didn't want to waste an opportunity when it came to what Nomi might represent," she said. "I searched for at least one moment in the script where Black audience members would nod their heads, tutting at the reality but glad to see their real life represented. In every project I am part of, no matter the budget or genre, the Black experience that I'm presenting needs to be 100 percent authentic."

"No Time to Die" opens in theaters on October 8.