'Cillian Murphy would make a magnificent James Bond,' says Pierce Brosnan

Fan speculation, however, has been rampant, with Murphy climbing the ranks of dream castings following his recent powerhouse performances in the final season of Peaky Blinders and Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer.

The latter flick was the second highest-grossing film of last year, making more than $900 million at the global box office and becoming the frontrunner at this year's Academy Awards (which take place tomorrow).

Murphy is in contention for the Best Actor prize, following earlier wins at the BAFTAs, Golden Globes and SAG Awards, but faces fierce competition from the likes of Paul Giamatti and Jeffrey Wright.

Brosnan and Murphy were both present at this year's Oscar Wilde Awards, which honour Irish talent working in Hollywood, where the former was asked for his pick to lead the spy franchise.

"Cillian would do a magnificent job as James Bond on His Majesty's Secret Service," Brosnan told BBC News.

When the comment was relayed to Murphy, the actor was characteristically coy in response, saying that he hadn't heard any Bond rumours involving himself.

He also declined to get swept up in the excitement surrounding his Oscar chances, adding: "I just want to go in and have a good time."

• Read more – James Bond actors in order: The complete history of 007 stars

Murphy's frequent collaborator Christopher Nolan, who he worked with on Oppenheimer, The Dark Knight Trilogy, Dunkirk and Inception, has expressed interest in directing a James Bond film in the near future.

He told the Happy Sad Confused podcast (via Deadline) that it would be an "amazing privilege" to contribute to the franchise, but later revealed to Associated Press that there was "no truth" to rumours he had signed on to the as-yet-untitled Bond 26.

The Academy Awards take place on Sunday 10th March. Watch on ITV1/ITVX. Check out more of our Film coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on.

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