Idris Elba (50) has again commented on the 007 rumors. The Golden Globe winner told The Guardian that he wasn’t even close to playing James Bond after Daniel Craig (55) left the franchise. The British actor’s name has repeatedly been mentioned in recent months when it came to speculation about Craig’s successor.
“I love the Bond franchise, I’m very close to the producers,” Elba said. “We all kind of laughed at the rumors because that’s what they are.” The “Luther” star continued to say that he could not speak for the producers. “But from my point of view there was never any truth in that. It’s a compliment and an honor – but there’s no truth to it.”
The Hollywood star keeps trying to get out of the Bond game. For example, the 50-year-old said on the podcast “The Shop” in September: “It’s not a career goal for me.” He doesn’t think “playing Bond will satisfy some of my personal goals.”
In the same breath, Elba mentioned the apparent desire of James Bond fans around the world to see him in the role. In “every corner of the world” he visits and in “different cultures,” scores of people would point fingers and yell “Bond,” according to the star. But even that doesn’t change Elba’s own statement. “I’m not that guy,” he said, even though so many fans would like it to be.
Recently, younger actors than Bond have also been talked about. Earlier this year, for example, Lucien Laviscount (30) was added as a supposed new contender for the 007 role. The British actor has won millions of fans as a charming heartthrob in the Netflix series Emily in Paris. Among them should also be “James Bond” producer Barbara Broccoli (62).
The British “The Sun” had reported shortly before that action star Aaron Taylor-Johnson (32, “Bullet Train”) should be the favorite for the James Bond role. According to this, Taylor-Johnson is said to have impressed Barbara Broccoli at the audition at Pinewood Studios. The British tabloid then reported that the 32-year-old is said to have been in front of the camera for the legendary “gun barrel sequence”. In the sequence, which can be seen in almost all “James Bond” films, secret agent Bond shoots towards the viewer, causing blood to run down the screen.
In addition to Idris Elba, Tom Hardy (45) and James Norton (37) have repeatedly been named as favorites to succeed Daniel Craig in recent months and years. Henry Cavill (39) and Regé Jean-Page (34) are also doing well with British bookmakers. Bond producer Broccoli had previously announced that she wanted to “reinvent” the agent for the next film in the series.
