The word is (just about) official: leading Amazon’s reboot of the James Bond franchise will be Denis ‘Dune’ Villeneuve on directing duties and Steven ‘Peaky Blinders’ Knight on writing duties.
Given the pair of them have worked with some of the hottest male stars on the planet - Bond will not be a woman, though rumours of a female 007 spin-off are strong, likely as a TV series - the field has now become a little clearer in the race for one of the most iconic film roles in history. Put simply, the two men will want to work with someone they trust.
So here’s who to put your money on:
Austin Butler (33)
Aside from an inevitable ‘he’s American!’ backlash, Butler would be the perfect choice. Cool, supernaturally good-looking, has a certain edge that makes him convincingly violent, can genuinely act and quite simply, Butler is a perfect leading man.
Since he has worked with Villeneuve on Dune: Part Two, there’s an existing relationship and that always makes a difference when the stakes are high.
No, he’s not English. But nor was Sean Connery. Butler would be deliver, for sure.
Chances: 8/10
Jack O’Connell (35)
Now for someone trusted by Steven Knight. Jack O’Connell stars in the hugely entertaining SAS Rogue Heroes for its showrunner Knight, and while he plays Irishman Paddy Mayne in that, O’Connell is of course English.
And more to the point, he may be adept at character parts - see Sinners - but the guys is leading man all over, he projects fearlessness, cool and a certain charismatic panache. Potentially a perfect Bond.
Chances 9/10
Cillian Murphy (49)
While some have said Murphy’s age counts him out of a franchise that will want to establish a new Bond to work over a series of new films, it of course all depends on how the new Bond is written.
Could they, rather than employ some new acting hot stuff, subvert expectations with an older Bond? Surely they could make things work to enable Murphy to play the role. A man who is, after all, one of the greatest actors of any generation? Who wouldn’t like to see him in a tux wrestling with Jaws?
Chances: 6/10
Timothee Chalamet (29)
He’s obviously Villeneuve’s boy from Dune, and while he may not be the obvious fit for Bond (too skinny, too cerebral), he is an unbelievably good actor. You know he could pull off a killer Bond, with charm, grace, wit, and considerable sex appeal... a very Roger Moore-style Bond.
Paul Atreides is effectively an action hero role with brains, so why not Chalamet?
Chances: 7/10
Jacob Elordi (28)
Surely one of the front-runners, Elordi has the brooding dark looks of Connery and while he can pull of the posh society boy look - as we saw in Saltburn - like Connery he’s working-class. You can imagine people glossing over his Australian heritage in a way that they wouldn’t for some of the Americans on this list, given that he ‘presents’ very English.
But look, he’s young, handsome, brooding, and is a convincing lady-killer; he ticks all the classic Bond boxes.
Chances: 9/10
James Nelson-Joyce (36)
Well, Nelson-Joyce is definitely in the running because he told us he was. And it makes sense. He was sensational in This City Is Ours, the ‘Scouse Sopranos’ which was such a hit for the BBC earlier this year, and has something special about him that others lack.
A kind of edgy vulnerability, where you never know what’s he’s going to do next. Exactly like his close friend Stephen Graham, he’s unpredictable, keen on improvisation, and as such, you can’t take your eyes off him.
A Scouse Bond? Of course. He’s cool, handsome, a bit of a loon... true 007 material.
Chances: 8/10
Aaron Taylor-Johnson (35)
He’s been linked with the role for some time now, without there being any news to confirm it. As such, it feels like things have cooled around him. Truth is though, he could do it, and do it well. He’s matured in a seriously good actor, making a lot of his supporting roles in Nosferatu and Bullet Train, to name just a couple.
He can do funny, has a Men’s Health torso, and you can imagine him bringing plenty of self-aware charm to the role.
It’s interesting: will the new Bond be deadly serious like Craig’s, or come at things more playfully? The exciting thing about TaylorJohnson is, he could do either.
Chances: 9/10
Aaron Pierre
Now this is an interesting one. If you haven’t seen Pierre in anything yet... well, do so immediately. He was sensational in Netflix’s Rebel Ridge, in which he’s a former Marine battling a corrupt Sheriff in an American town. But the guy’s English, and honestly, he is ripped as anything, an action star who also happens to be so handsome it’s almost criminal.
Make this guy Bond and you have no trouble with convincing people that every woman in the world wants to sleep with him. The only problem is, the villains may not even want to kill him, as he’s so beautiful.
No, Pierre would be an excellent choice, and the first black Bond would be a winning way to restart the franchise.
Chances: 8/10
Harris Dickinson (29)
Babygirl showed he can be a pin-up, and he’s undoubtedly possessing of rare charisma. There’s something prickly and strange about him, which you feel could count against him for a character as straight-up as Bond, who is anything but an oddball.
But Dickinson is a fine actor and you could imagine him having an ultra-cool Gen-z take... which may indeed be where this whole franchise is going. A kind of Hackney 007... oh god.
Chances: 5/10
Paul Mescal (29)
Since Amazon are going route one with their director and writer - two of the biggest names in their field - they may well just go route one with their star too: Mescal, the hottest actor of his generation.
He has everything, doesn’t he? Gladiator II showed he can front up an epic action movie. He’s a sex symbol. Has a twinkle in his eye to deliver one-liners. Wears the hell out of a suit. And can go from tough to sensitive in the blink of an eye, something the new Bond will surely have to do.
I mean, it’s almost too obvious for it to happen, but... surely?
Chances: 9/10
Theo James (40)
The thing about James - as with Henry Cavill - is that he might just be too old for it now. Either of them would have been perfect had Daniel Craig left a few years ago, but now?
Put it this way: James would be a solid choice, he looks the part, and would make a good Bond.
But would it be exciting? This is an age of statement casting, in which you want to get everyone talking about your IP way before they’ve even been shot. Nobody is going to debate Theo James as Bond in a way that they would, say, Aaron Pierre. So you feel it could be a no here.
Chances: 5/10
Paapa Essiedu (aged 35)
Again, casting the first black James Bond would be a big and welcome move, which would get the whole world talking... but it would count for nothing if the actor wasn’t the real deal. Which Essiedu most certainly is.
He has serious stage acting chops, good looks, and can do charm, threat, cool. Above all, he’s believable in everything he touches, an actor who delivers on the character. He’d deliver on Bond. And would be a genuinely exciting new start...
Chances: 9/10
