As much as we loved Daniel Craig’s 15-year reign as James Bond, his 007 days have finally come to an end as he takes to the screen for his final farewell in No Time To Die.
During the media frenzy, the daughter of Cubby Broccoli, legendary Hollywood director responsible for the James Bond franchise, told Radio 4’s Today programme that they weren’t “even thinking about” casting just yet, and don’t plan on doing so until 2022.
“We want Daniel [Craig] to have his time of celebration,” Barbara Broccoli said. “Next year, we’ll start thinking about the future.”
“I always say: you can only be in love with one person at a time,” she said in an earlier interview with Total Film.
“Once [No Time to Die] comes out, then some time will pass, and then we’ll have to get on to the business of the future. But for now, we just cannot think about anything beyond Daniel.”
Speculations continue to rage around who the longstanding Bond will pass the baton to. The question has been on everyone’s lips been since 2015 when the 53-year-old actor joked he would rather “slash his wrists” than appear in another Bond film.
According to Ladbrokes, Tom Hardy (3/1) continues to lead the pack. The English actor, famed for his role as Max Rockatansky in Mad Max and Eames in Inception, is one of the most cited suitors in Bond casting rumours. Alex Apati of Ladbrokes said: “Tom Hardy is back at the top of the Bond betting, with punters seemingly convinced he’ll be the man to replace Daniel Craig as 007.”
Game of Thrones’ and Eternals actor Richard Madden also comes in as a bookie favourite, followed by The Umbrella Academy’s Tom Hopper (4/1) and the Bridgerton duke himself, Rege-Jean Page (5/1).
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While there are several spy-worthy suitors to follow in Craig’s footsteps, there are also some very unlikely faces that have surprisingly made the books. And, dare we say it, there’s a tiny part of us that would love to see a few of these sipping on a freshly shaken Martini – for the sake of entertainment.
Others, not so much.
Rylan Clark 250/1
We didn’t see this one coming...
The English television, radio presenter, singer, narrator and model has pretty much done it all.
He kickstarted his showbiz career in 2010 after appearing on Signed by Katie Price, where hopefuls competed for a modelling contract. He then appeared on the ninth series of X Factor before going on to win Celebrity Big Brother in 2013.
Maybe Bond will be his next big break.
Keith Lemon 250/1
Bond with a thick Leeds accent?
While it wasn’t exactly what we were envisioning, we’re kind of open to the Northern rebrand.
Nigel Farage 1000/1
In true Farage style, he declared his deep-rooted concerns that Bond is “going to go woke” during a debate on GB News.
“You’ve got to be faithful to Ian Fleming and the original writer. It has to be male. It has to be a rogue of some description,” he said in a 2015 interview with Magic radio.
When asked whether he could fill the role, he said that he’s “certainly a rogue” and that he’d “give it a go”, but he’s “not handsome enough.”
His words, not ours.
Donald Trump 1000/1
While Trump as Bond is enough to make anyone squirm, you’ll be happy to hear that the reality of it happening is almost impossible – that’s because he couldn’t even secure a brief appearance in a Bond film.
According to Forbes, he is officially the first US president since (by default) Dwight Eisenhower to not feature in a single James Bond movie released during his tenure.
Salt Bae 1000/1
He has a certain 007 aesthetic – but Salt Bae seemingly has his hands full.
Piers Morgan 1000/1
We’re not sure Craig would be happy about this casting call after Morgan took to Twitter to bash his pink suede blazer worn at the No Time To Die premiere, comparing it to an “Austin Powers tribute act.”
“James Bond would never wear a garish pink suede dinner jacket,” he tweeted. “You’re supposed to be a steely-eyed assassin with exemplary sartorial taste, Mr Craig…. not an Austin Powers tribute act.”
Katie Price 1000/1
Well, there were rumours of casting the first female Bond...
Katie Price almost had her first stint in acting after auditioning to appear in the second Sex and the City film in 2019 as the “hot nanny.”
“I auditioned to be the hot babysitter on [Sex And The City] and obviously, I clearly didn’t get it,” Katie said, speaking on the podcast The Fellas.
Prince Charles 2000/1
I mean, Charles is seemingly a huge Bond fan.
The official Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall Twitter page has even shared behind the scenes Bond snaps. Not to mention, he was in attendance at the No Time To Die premiere.
Bond is back. 🍸
— The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall (@ClarenceHouse) September 28, 2021
The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall, joined by The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge @KensingtonRoyal, will shortly be arriving at the World Premiere of #NoTimeToDie, the 25th installment of the @007 James Bond movies. pic.twitter.com/MZUFVuwztb
Who knows.
