WithDaniel Craig’s tenure as 007 coming to a close next month,James BondproducersBarbara BroccoliandMichael G. Wilsonhave been fielding a lot of questions about who will take up the title next. In 2006 Craig debuted as the seventh iteration of the suave British spy inCasino Royale, but it doesn’t sound like an eighth actor will be cast until he’s had a chance to fully celebrate his fifteen years as James Bond.
We’re not thinking about it at all," said Broccoli, in an interview on BBC Radio 4. “We want Daniel to have his time of celebration. Next year we’ll start thinking about the future.” While the producers may not be thinking about the next Bond, betting company William Hill has already named seventy actors that might be in the running, withTom Hardy,Regé-Jean Page,Luke Evans, andIdris Elbaat the top of the list.
RELATED:Daniel Craig Gives Emotional Speech After Wrapping ‘No Time to Die’
Since 2018, Broccoli has maintained that James Bond should be played by a man, rather than shaking things up by casting a woman to fill the role. “He’s a male character,” she toldThe Guardian. “He was written as a male and I think he’ll probably stay as a male.”
Craig recently echoed this sentimentduring an interview with Radio Times, saying, “There should simply be better parts for women and actors of color. Why should a woman play James Bond when there should be a part just as good as James Bond, but for a woman?” His statement was met with mixed emotions from fans, many of whom have been campaigning for the role to be treated likeDoctor Who– who castJodie Whittakerin the role that had previously been played by fourteen men — while others agreed that simply changing a role’s gender isn’t enough.
Speculation about the next Bond will inevitably continue until an announcement is made next year, but until then fans can catch Craig’s swan song inNo Time to Diein theaters on October 8.
KEEP READING:Daniel Craig Says James Bond Should Stay a Male Character: “There Should Simply Be Better Parts for Women”
