James Bond bosses have dropped the biggest hint yet that the next actor to play 007 will not be white, but squashed rumours Daniel Craig's successor would be a woman.
No Time To Die will be Craig’s last outing as the M16 spy, and rumours have been swirling that the person to take over the role may not be male.
Speculation that Bond could be a woman was fuelled after actress Lashana Lynch was confirmed to be playing a female 00 agent after Craig's Bond left active service.
But Barbara Broccoli, producer of the iconic series, has now said: “he can be of any colour, but he is male.”
The producer’s move to say Bond could be of any colour is the strongest hint yet that the next 007 will not be a white man. Idris Elba has often been mentioned as a successor to Craig, along with Last Christmas star Henry Golding.
Confirming the role would not be played by a female, Broccoli told Variety magazine that there should instead be a focus on creating strong new characters for women.
"I'm not particularly interested in taking a male character and having a woman play it,” she added.
"I think women are far more interesting than that.”
No Time To Die is the 25th film in the iconic series and is set to be released in UK cinemas on April 2.
Alongside Craig, it will also star Lynch and Ana de Armas, with Lea Seydoux and Ben Whishaw set to reprise their roles.
Billie Eilish will perform the theme tune. The 18-year-old will be the youngest ever artist to write and record the song for the franchise.
