Who will be the next James Bond? New actors who could replace Daniel Craig

It's unclear yet exactly what will change with Amazon now the sole creative force behind the franchise, but it's very possible it could have an impact on the identity of the next actor to take on the role.

And one thing that will definitely have an impact is the news that casting director Debbie McWilliams – who had been in the role for the past 44 years and cast the last three 007s – has retired, announcing that she had "now hung up my casting hat".

Prior to these two major announcements, Aaron Taylor-Johnson had emerged as the major favourite to succeed Craig, with some reports event suggesting he had been offered the role – but as for whether he's still in the running, that's difficult to know.

But who else is in the frame? Read on for a list of the potential candidates...

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Aaron Taylor-Johnson

Kick-Ass and Tenet star Aaron Taylor-Johnson had previously emerged as a frontrunner for the role, after a report from Matthew Belloni of Puck News said he had "sat with [Bond] producer Barbara Broccoli, and the meeting went well".

Belloni added that Taylor-Johnson checks all of the boxes: "Great actor, British, fits the younger direction the Broccolis want to go, accomplished but not particularly famous."

Previously, the 34-year-old actor was said to have impressed in a secret audition for Broccoli at Pinewood Studios in November 2022.

An apparent source told The Sun: "Bosses at the brand were really impressed with his unique blend of acting intensity and his impressive back catalogue of action films."

Even after the news that Broccoli and Michael G Wilson had stepped back from the franchise, Taylor-Johnson remains the current bookies' favourite.

James Norton

Currently, the closest name to Taylor-Johnson as far as the bookies' odds are concerned is James Norton – who has long been one of the stars linked to the role.

Famous for his roles in Happy Valley, Grantchester and McMafia, James Norton is already a firm favourite here in the UK, so it's little surprise his name has been thrown into the conversation.

Recently, there were reports that a "clue" had been left in his latest series Playing Nice that hinted at him becoming the next Bond, but when quizzed on the fact he was one of the favourites for the role at the recent EE BAFTA Film Awards, Norton seemed to downplay the rumours.

"Whoever's deciding on these odds needs to get a new job," he said.

When asked how he felt about the rumours, Norton admitted he finds it "so weird and bemusing".

"But yet again, it's based on pure speculation and it makes for a good little clickbait moment in the media," he said. "Other than that, it's just fun and bemusing."

Henry Cavill

Superman and The Witcher actor Henry Cavill is one of the other names regularly touted as a good fit for James Bond, making headlines in November 2019 when he revealed the bizarre reason he was ruled out the first time.

Cavill competed with Craig for the role – and his audition tape was recently made public – but ultimately was passed over for – in his own words – being overweight.

He told Men's Health: "I probably could have prepared better. I remember the director, Martin Campbell, saying, 'Looking a little chubby there, Henry.' I didn’t know how to train or diet. And I’m glad Martin said something, because I respond well to truth. It helps me get better."

Cavill has publicly expressed interest in the role a few times since and he certainly seems to be a popular pick: when Jeff Bezos asked his followers on X (formerly Twitter) who should take on the role now Amazon had full creative control, Cavill's name was the most common response.

At 41, he's perhaps too old to be taking on the role now – but he's still currently in the top five as far as bookies' odds are concerned.

Harris Dickinson

One of the latest names to be mentioned as a possible 007 is Harris Dickinson – who has recently appeared in a number of acclaimed films including Triangle of Sadness, The Iron Claw and Babygirl.

At 28, he certainly has age on his side – and he's currently near the top of the bookies' odds for the role. Meanwhile, speculation currently went into overdrive when it was spotted that he had suspiciously few projects listed on the "upcoming" section of his IMDB page.

However, the more likely explanation for this is that he's been heavily linked to the role of John Lennon in Sam Mendes's upcoming Beatles biopics – so we probably shouldn't get too ahead of ourselves yet.

Theo James

Another man who is currently near the top of the odds table is Theo James – who has recently starred in a dual role in horror film The Monkey and also counts The Gentlemen, The White Lotus and Sanditon among his notable roles.

But he seems like an unlikely pick for one key reason: he doesn't seem especially interested in taking on the role himself.

"I love some of the Sean Connery movies, but I think they need to do something else," he explained in an interview with SiriusXM in 2023. "Do you know what I mean? They need to really go with a reinvention of it in a different way, and that wouldn’t be me."

Of course, it's possible that could be deflection, but it does seem like this makes him a long shot for the time being.

Callum Turner

Turner has made a name for himself with roles in TV shows including The Capture and Masters of the Air – and at 34, he's certainly in the right age bracket for the role.

The fact that he's not yet too big a name for the role can also count in his favour, and might explain why he's currently near the top of the bookies' odds.

Addressing rumours in an interview with Entertainment Tonight, he joked: "I think my mum is putting those rumours around town."

He added at the time: "Barbara Broccoli is an amazing producer, so I would love to work with her in any capacity."

Of course, Broccoli is no longer involved in the franchise, but we imagine that wouldn't have dimmed Turner's ambitions too much...

Regé-Jean Page

Regé-Jean Page became a global superstar overnight with the launch of Bridgerton on Netflix, and has been one of the buzziest names in Hollywood ever since.

He's booked a number of high-profile jobs in the last couple of years, including the Dungeons & Dragons adaptation, the Netflix thriller The Gray Man, which co-starred Chris Evans and Ryan Gosling, and the upcoming Steven Soderbergh spy flick Black Bag.

Page has already been attached to play The Saint in a new movie from Paramount Pictures, a role which Roger Moore famously played before starting his Bond run in the early '70s.

However, he's slipped down the bookies' odds since his name was first mentioned – and is no longer considered one of the major frontrunners.

Idris Elba

Idris Elba has long been rumoured to replace Daniel Craig, with rampant speculation dating back to the actor's first planned exit with 2016's Spectre.

While at one point, the Luther star invited the talk with a cryptic social media post – captioned "My name's Elba, Idris Elba" – he has since attempted to put some distance between himself and the non-stop rumours, despite Barbara Broccoli acknowledging that the actor was "part of the conversation" around the next 007.

In an interview with the Daily Mail's Event magazine, he explained that he is reluctant to take on a character that would inevitably "define" his career, preferring to take on more varied roles he can disappear into.

"Bond is one of the biggest franchises in the world, and for that reason, whoever ends up playing it, lives it," he said. "You’re THAT character, and known as that character for many, many years. I’m creating characters now that can still live alongside Idris. Not ones that take over me and solely define me."

Elba has also discussed that his excitement about taking on the iconic role was tainted by the backlash he received from certain people who seem to think that Bond can't be Black.

Speaking to Esquire, he said: "You just get disheartened when you get people from a generational point of view going, 'It can’t be.' And it really turns out to be the colour of my skin.

"And then if I get it and it didn’t work, or it did work, would it be because of the colour of my skin? That’s a difficult position to put myself into when I don’t need to."

Elba addressed the speculation again on LeBron James and Maverick Carter's The Shop: Uninterrupted series. "It is not a goal for my career," he said of playing Bond. "I don’t think that, you know, playing Bond will satisfy some of my personal goals."

With the producers previously saying that the next Bond will be in his 30s, it seems that Elba can probably be ruled out of the running for now – unless there's another late twist, that is.

Jack Lowden

There's been some talk that the franchise could move back to its roots by appointing the first Scottish Bond since Sean Connery – and Jack Lowden is an actor who fits the bill.

The star has seen his stock steadily rise in recent years with roles in films such as Dunkirk, Fighting with My Family and Benediction, while his role as River Cartwright in Apple TV+'s spy drama Slow Horses has seen him emerge as a possible candidate for 007.

He currently sits as the sixth favourite with the bookmakers, and when previously asked about the rumours by RadioTimes.com, he responded: "It’s quite bizarre because it feels like Daniel Craig is still Bond, so even to… as a fan, even to sort of be contemplating anyone else playing him… I mean, I don't envy them, how they're gonna replace him because I still think he is [Bond]. He was mine. That's who I grew up with."

His Slow Horses co-star Kristin Scott Thomas certainly thinks Lowden would be up to the task – telling him during the same interview: "It’s a very, very tough job. But you’d be very good at it.”

Tom Hardy

Tom Hardy has built a reputation for being one of the most versatile and popular actors in the UK, while he also seems more than capable of giving Bond the same edge he developed during Craig's tenure.

The Dunkirk and Inception actor seems interested in the role too, staying coy on the matter when quizzed by journalists so as not to talk himself out of the running.

"There’s a saying amongst us in the fraternity of acting... that if you talk about it [Bond rumours] you’re automatically out of the race," he told The Daily Beast. "So I can’t possibly comment on that one!"

However, at 47, it seems likely that Hardy is another one who's probably too old for the role now – so we can probably rule him out.

Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù

Gangs of London star Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù is another actor who has seen his name thrown into the mix – but he previously explained that we should take this with a pinch of salt: "I think the shortest I’ve ever been at any one time is 6 to 1, and that’s too close," he told The Hollywood Reporter in November 2022.

"I think Bond is the kingmaker — rather than [that] someone who is already king gets to be Bond. So yeah, the shorter the odds are, the less likely it’s going to happen."

Dìrísù has expressed interest in the role, though, and has confessed to being a lifelong fan of the franchise, telling NME in October 2022 that, "I’ve got a very deep connection with those films and my father."

He added: "It’s an honour that someone would even consider that I could play such a quintessentially British role, especially as a Black man. There was a lot of racial bulls**t around Idris’s consideration for the role. I like to think times are changing, but I don’t know if that’s true."

Richard Madden

Ever since Game of Thrones' Richard Madden broke TV records — and the nation's hearts — in the Golden Globe-winning Bodyguard, he's been rumoured to be in the running as the next James Bond actor.

In 2018, the actor even responded to rumours he was up for the prestigious gig, adding that he didn't want to "curse anything" by going into too much detail about the rumours.

"I’m more than flattered to be mentioned, for people to consider putting me in that role. I’m very flattered and thankful. It’s a really brilliant thing to be in," he told GQ magazine. "I don’t want to curse anything by saying anything. I think that’s the curse of that. If you talk about anything, you’ll curse it."

However, his Bodyguard co-star Keeley Hawes, who played Home Secretary Julia Montague in the drama, was more than happy to chat about the idea at 2019's Radio Times Covers Party.

"I said to Richard while we were shooting, 'This is like James Bond!'" she revealed. "I would love to see Richard playing James Bond; I would love that. I think he would be phenomenal."

Notably, Madden rumours have gone relatively quiet more recently – and so he currently seems like something of a long shot.

Sam Heughan

Outlander star Sam Heughan has repeatedly voiced his interest in bringing Bond back to Scotland for the first time since Sean Connery's stint as the suave spy.

Asked whether he'd considered the role, Heughan previously told STV News: "I think any actor who says they wouldn't would be lying, and I think it's time we have a Scottish Bond again."

In June 2020, the actor revealed during an appearance on ITV's This Morning that he had been one of many actors to audition for Bond before Daniel Craig was cast, describing it as a "dream role".

"I auditioned for it back when they were doing Bond 21, when Daniel Craig was cast in Casino Royale, and I think a lot of actors were seen in the UK," he said. "Of course, it would be a dream role and a Scottish Bond, who doesn't want to see another Scottish Bond!"

RadioTimes.com readers certainly got behind the idea, as Heughan stormed to victory in our poll on who should become the next James Bond, beating tough competition from Hardy, Elba and several other names on this list.

Aidan Turner

Aidan Turner was at one point considered a top candidate to become the next 007, particularly after production came to a close on his popular BBC One period drama Poldark.

Speaking to i Newspaper in 2018, he commented on the rumours: "There’s someone else playing the role – I always feel weird talking about it. It’s come up a lot in recent times. When it’s free, I’ll have a look at it. But it’s not free now."

Now that the role is free, the Leonardo star is yet to confirm whether his hat is still in the running – but he could be one to keep an eye out for.

Rupert Friend

In an interesting twist, Rupert Friend was actually asked to screen test for the role of Bond at the age of 22, after Pierce Brosnan left the franchise — but said no.

"I just thought, 'I’m too young for this. I need to have some life experience. James Bond needs to have lived,'" Friend said in an interview with The Times. "I love Bond films. I don’t want to be the guy who messes it up because he hasn’t got miles on the clock."

These days, Friend is no stranger to action and espionage, best known for playing CIA hitman Peter Quinn in Homeland, while he demonstrated more assassin skills in 2015's ill-fated video game adaptation Hitman: Agent 47.

With this added life experience, Friend might be ready to give Bond a go this time around were MGM to give him a call.

Tom Hiddleston

Just a few years ago, it seemed like Tom Hiddleston was a safe bet to take on the role of James Bond, with reports of a meeting between himself and Broccoli following the success of The Night Manager.

Indeed, rumours stated that he could even reunite with director Susanne Bier on a Bond movie, but all this talk faded away over time – before hitting an abrupt end with the announcement of Craig's surprise return in April 2017.

The New York Post's Page Six claimed that Broccoli had changed her mind about Hiddleston after his widely criticised speech at 2017's Golden Globes, although this was never officially confirmed.

It's not impossible that Hiddleston could cycle back around to the Bond franchise, particularly with his massive popularity after two seasons of smash-hit Loki series on Disney Plus.

But he's another who might now be too old for the role, something which is reflected when it comes to the current bookies' odds.

Henry Golding

Snake Eyes star Henry Golding is another who has previously expressed his enthusiasm for the role, throwing his hat into the ring during an interview with Andy Cohen.

"I guess they are looking for another candidate," he said. "So, of course, any right sort of man would want to put their hand up for it. So sure, let's talk."

Speaking to Attitude, Golding theorised that his Bond credentials became evident after his suave appearance in romcom Crazy Rich Asians, adding that it's an "honour" to even be considered for the role.

"It’s one of the greatest film roles ever, you’d be stupid to be like, 'I don’t want to do that s**t,'" he joked. "It would be the wildest ride. I’m super excited to see Daniel Craig’s last venture… but isn’t it great that we’re having that conversation?"

Golding continued: "Isn’t it great that people are like, 'OK, now’s the time, why the hell can’t we have a Black Bond, an Asian Bond, a mixed-race Bond, a non-distinct Bond?'"

Read more:

• Bond producer had to fight to hire Daniel Craig, says casting director
• No Time to Die sequence almost appeared in a Pierce Brosnan Bond movie
• James Bond producer wants to "surprise" audiences with 'refreshed' 007
• James Bond special The Sound of 007 to stream on Prime Video
• Timothy Dalton was never "comfortable" as Bond, says casting director

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