Warning: SPOILERS for No Time To Die.
As Paloma in No Time To Die, Ana De Armas completes the Daniel Craig James Bond era's break from the traditional role of Bond Girls. Along with Léa Seydoux as Dr. Madeleine Swann, Lashana Lynch as Nomi AKA the new 007, and Naomie Harris as Eve Moneypenny, Ana De Armas is part of the film's new breed of Bond Girl who plays a critical role in No Time To Die. Paloma is a far cry from the 007 movies' previous Bond Girls and she playfully upends their traditional tropes.
Since the inception of the James Bond movies, Bond Girls have been a ubiquitous part of the franchise. Whether they were good Bond Girls on the side of 007 or villainesses out to destroy the British secret agent, Bond Girls are traditionally extremely beautiful and glamorous sex symbols who enhance Bond's status as an international gentleman spy. The Bond films also launched Bond Girls' careers and many became world-famous stars, including Ursula Andress, Jane Seymour, Denise Richards, and Eva Green. But the Bond Girls are also part of a misogynistic tradition of beautiful women who easily fall into bed with 007 and the Bond Girls often get killed off to motivate James to heroically act. This is something that Craig's Bond movies have copiously moved away from since Eva Green's Vesper Lynd perished in Casino Royale, and Ana De Armas' Paloma is a perfect subversion of the classic Bond Girl tropes.
In No Time To Die, Paloma is introduced when James Bond travels to Santiago, Cuba, to infiltrate a Spectre party. Paloma is Bond's CIA contact working for Felix Leiter (Jeffrey Wright) and, in her slinky gown, she looks like a throwback to a traditional Bond Girl who is easy on the eyes but someone James will have to protect. After all, Paloma freely admits that she only had "three weeks training." However, No Time To Die subverts expectations about Paloma right away: It's Bond who has to strip to change into a tuxedo that Paloma prepared for him, and she is well-prepared with earpieces and microphones for their spy mission. As they mingle at the Spectre party, Paloma proves herself sharp, observant, and highly competent. It's Paloma who leads Bond through the mission, not vice versa.
When the violence inevitably begins, Paloma becomes an incredible fighter who takes out multiple Spectre agents and she saves Bond rather than the opposite. Paloma is also quick-thinking as she acquires a car and makes sure Bond is able to capture their target, Valdo Obruchev (David Dencik). By the time their mission is over, Bond rightly questions Paloma's claim of only training for three weeks, and she cheekily replies, "More or less." Paloma then cheerfully invites Bond to return - "Next time, stay longer" - before she exits No Time To Die. Paloma's Cuba sequence is one of the best in the film and Ana De Armas steals every scene.
In another James Bond era, Paloma would not have been as competent or clever. She would have been cast as someone Bond has to protect rather than his equal. Paloma would also either have died to service James' story or she would have ended up in bed with 007. Instead, Paloma holds her own and earns James Bond's respect. Paloma's flighty and bubbly persona is also obviously hiding a keen intelligence and the calculating mind of a born spy who knows how to use how men see her to her advantage. In fact, it's disappointing when Paloma doesn't return to help Bond in No Time To Die because the film would have benefited from seeing more of her.
During promotion for No Time To Die, Craig claimed that "Bond girls don't exist anymore," especially not in his 007 movies. In fact, No Time To Die's Bond Girls, including Madeleine, Nomi, and Moneypenny, are the most capable group of women the franchise has seen. Ana De Armas' Paloma is the ultimate proof that No Time To Die broke tradition. Paloma has all of the sex appeal expected from a Bond Girl but she also boasts agency, skills, wit, charm, and brains to make her more than a match for James Bond. Hopefully, future Bond movies follow Paloma's lead in No Time To Die.