While James Bond fans continue to wait for a casting announcement regarding the next lead of the franchise, Olivia Colman has thrown her hat in the ring for another role.
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Speaking with British Vogue, Colman revealed her long-held ambition to play M, the character played by the likes of Bernard Lee, Robert Brown, Judi Dench and Ralph Fiennes.
When the interviewer likened her to a young Judi Dench, she said: "What! I’ve never heard that. Oh, I love that! Well, I’ve got short hair."
The interviewer then suggested she could appear in Bond, as Dench did, to which she said: "Oh, my God! The amount of time I have wanted to be M. I’m not sure who I need to call…"
Olivia Colman in Secret Invasion. Gareth Gatrell/Disney Plus
Colman then said she met Barbara Broccoli once, and that she "wanted to go, 'Can I be M?'", but added that she "must try to be cooler about it".
Colman got a taste of franchise-based spy action in this year's Marvel series Secret Invasion, in which she played Sonya Falsworth.
It was one of three TV appearances for the star this year, as she also played Miss Havisham in Great Expectations and made a cameo appearance in The Bear.
One actor we know appears unlikely to be featuring as M in the next Bond film, despite reports earlier this year, is Daisy May Cooper.
Cooper, star of This Country and Am I Being Unreasonable?, was reported to be in line for the role of M by The Sun, but, in a winner's speech read out for her at an awards ceremony, she said: "I can't be there because I'm filming Bond... jokes, the only M I'll ever be is mental."
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James Hibbs is a Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering programmes across both streaming platforms and linear channels. He previously worked in PR, first for a B2B agency and subsequently for international TV production company Fremantle. He possesses a BA in English and Theatre Studies and an NCTJ Level 5 Diploma in Journalism.
