The search for the next James Bond is officially on.
So say famous Bond producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G Wilson.
It’s still “early days,” the pair told Variety in a recent interview about the goliath casting.
Daniel Craig played the world’s most famous spy for 15 years and the producers understand that it’s a weighty commitment for any actor.
Idris Elba, a longtime candidate to become the first Black 007, recently stated that the job isn’t “a goal for my career”.
“He’s great,” Wilson said. “We love Idris,” Broccoli added.
“The thing is, it’s going to be a couple of years off,” she noted. “And when we cast Bond, it’s a 10-12-year commitment. So he’s probably thinking, ‘Do I really want that thing?’ Not everybody wants to do that. It was hard enough getting [Daniel Craig to do it].” Wilson added: “And he was in his early 30s at the time!”
Speaking about the commitment required to shoulder the weight of the franchise across many years, Broccoli said: “A lot of people think, ‘Oh yeah, it’d be fun to do one. Well. That ain’t gonna work.”
She quoted former 007 actor Pierce Brosnan, who once said: “More people have walked on the moon than have played James Bond.”
According to Ladbrokes, British Superman star Henry Cavill is the bookies’ favourite to don the tuxedo at 2/1.
Ex-Bridgerton actor Rege-Jean Page is next at 7/2 followed by Idris Elba at 4/1 (despite his denials) and Tom Hardy at 5/1.
Page has the backing of famed Marvel directors Joe and Anthony Russo, who recently directed the actor in Netflix’s The Gray Man.
The brothers recently told Radio Times: “He’s fantastic. I mean, he has more charisma in his pinky than most people do in their entire body.
For a breakdown of the most likely candidates to be the next Bond, click here.
