James Bond bosses have dropped a massive hint the next 007 won’t be a white man as fans left in suspense over who could replace Daniel Craig.
As the star prepares for his final turn as 007, the franchise’s producers have dropped perhaps the biggest hint yet on who could replace him in the iconic role.
Producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G Wilson, who has overseen Daniel Craig’s era leading the re-energised spy series, believe the diversity of Bond’s native Britain would allow for a black or Asian bond.
Mrs Broccoli has drawn the line at the Martini lover being a woman, and said the MI5 operative can be “any colour”, he nevertheless “is male”.
Speaking on the agent’s ethnicity, fellow producer Mr Wilson suggested the spy’s Commonwealth connections could allow for a broader range of casting options.
That would keep the door open for Idris Elba, long favoured as Craig’s replacement.
“You think of him as being from Britain or the Commonwealth, but Britain is a very diverse place,” Wilson told Variety during a sit-down last month.
Explaining they are “custodians of this character” who “take that responsibility seriously,” Broccoli insisted she would love to see a strong, female spy — just not as James Bond.
“I believe we should be creating new characters for women — strong female characters,” she told the publication.
“I’m not particularly interested in taking a male character and having a woman play it. I think women are far more interesting than that.”
An actor tipped for the role is Idris Elba, who previously insisted that, should a black 007 be introduced, it should be based solely on merit.
"James Bond is a hugely coveted, iconic, beloved character, that takes audiences on this massive escapism journey," Elba told Vanity Fair magazine last year.
He said that he would accept the offer to play the spy if he was asked, adding: "But it's not something I've expressed, like, yeah, I wanna be the black James Bond."
"No Time to Die" will be Craig's fifth and final 007 film, with Oscar winner Rami Malek taking on the role of the villain.
