Stephen Hawking Wants to Be a James Bond Villain

Hawking at an event in 2013

Stephen Hawking is the hero of the new movie The Theory of Everything, but he dreams of being a villain. The famous physicist, who is portrayed by Eddie Redmayne in the new biopic, recently told Wired that he would love to make an appearance in a James Bond film. “My ideal role would be a baddie in James Bond,” said Hawking (via The Hollywood Reporter). “I think the wheelchair and the computer voice would fit the part.”

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As chronicled in The Theory of Everything, Hawking was diagnosed with a form of ALS at 21 years old, and has coped with the loss of his voice and motor functions by using a wheelchair and communicating with a computer. One of the world’s greatest thinkers, Hawking is also a recognizable presence in pop culture, having played himself on Star Trek: The Next Generation and The Simpsons. If the scientist is serious about adding a James Bond cameo to his résumé, now might be a good time: the upcoming Bond 24 is reportedly seeking a return to “classic” Bond villains in the vein of ’70s henchman Jaws (played by the late Richard Kiel).

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Nothing says “classic Bond” like an evil genius in a big chair. Bond’s most notorious villain, Ernst Stavro Blofeld, concocted his deadly schemes in seven Bond films, usually while seated in a black chair with a cat in his lap. (Coincidentally, one of those diabolical chairs will be going up for auction this weekend along with some other big-ticket Bond memorabilia.) A baddie who strongly resembled an injured Blofeld even attempted to kill Bond from a wheelchair using a remote-controlled helicopter in For Yours Eyes Only (watch below). We’ve no doubt Hawking would’ve pulled off the scheme with more finesse.

Photo credit: AP Photo/Cedars-Sinai, Eric Reed