How A Key 007 First Light Character Is Tied To James Bond's Origin Story Explained By Star

IO Interactive’s upcoming 007 First Light has introduced a character unfamiliar to the larger James Bond franchise: Greenway, portrayed by Lennie James. Greenway has immediately drawn comparisons to Ralph Fiennes’ Mallory, introduced in Skyfall, and according to James, that’s not far off.

In an interview with Screen Rant, Lennie James was asked if Greenway was a Mallory-like figure in 007 First Light, to which he responded:

“Yeah, I mean, that’s kind of, to a great or less extent, exactly who he is, really. But, basically, he’s an ex-00 who has been tasked with re-energizing, reinstating the 00 program, and he brings together a group of candidates, of which James Bond is one of them, obviously. He’s a kind of guide through the game, and there are acted scenes that helps the player figure out what they’ve got to do as they go along Bond’s quest. Greenway is a big part of that.”

Greenway being a former 00 is an important distinction between him and Mallory, who never served in MI6 before becoming an official, high-ranking liaison and subsequently taking over the role of M at the end of Skyfall. However, it does sound like Greenway and Bond will have a similar relationship, since Greenway is shown to not think highly of Bond in 007 First Light‘s reveal trailer.

Everything We Know About First Light’s Bond

The Youngest 007 Ever

007 First Light‘s version of James Bond utilizes the character’s usual tragic background, with his parents dying in a ski accident, but the game shares a rare territory with Casino Royale, potentially showing Bond before he attains 00 status. The trailer suggests First Light‘s 007 is impulsive, which isn’t exactly out of the norm, but he doesn’t appear to have the suave maturity of previous iterations of the character.

This is because 007 First Light‘s protagonist is the youngest James Bond we’ve ever seen, at least when comparing the 26-year-old character to the age of each actor when they portrayed Bond in the Eon films. Age may be part of Greenway’s poor assessment of Bond in the trailer. 00 agents have a famously short life expectancy, and it’s possible Greenway hit the mandatory retirement age of 45 that is imposed on 00 agents in Ian Fleming’s novels.

Greenway will clearly serve as a mentor figure to a very young 007, and shares rare company in the franchise. 00 agents other than Bond are seen only sporadically throughout the films, and only ever mentioned in Fleming’s works. Sean Bean’s 006 in GoldenEye is arguably the most prominent 00 that isn’t 007, and is joined by Greenway as one of the few former field agents for MI6.

007 First Light Is Already Looking Impressive

A Potentially Triumphant Comeback

Greenway at first appears as an almost redundant character beside M, simply being someone Bond answers to, but James’ explanation of Greenway as a former 00 tasked with rejuvenating the program is a very interesting turn. The implication is that MI6’s elite class of agents hasn’t been operating at its expected level, which helps contextualize M’s push for such a young Bond to be given 00 status.

While very little gameplay for 007 First Light has been shown, the cast that has come together already paints a promising picture for the Bond origin story. A lot of the James Bond hallmarks are there, even if the lack of multiplayer ignores the franchise’s gaming heritage. Lennie James’ Greenway is an interesting character that will help give 007 First Light its own identity among the many Bond stories already told.