After what feels like a lifetime of waiting, wishing, pondering and abject racism and sexism, we may or may not have our new Bond. James Bond.
A sneaky spy (no pun intended) revealed the news to Deuxmoi and good sweet lord, we hope the rumours are true.
Who is the next James Bond?
According to the anonymous tea-spiller, the next person to fill 007’s shoes is none other than Aaron Taylor-Johnson.
The British babe is best known for his roles in Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Godzilla and Kick-Ass.
“Aaron Taylor-Johnson is the next Bond,” the unnamed source wrote.
“A mini trailer of just him doing the famous Bond shot is going to be released March / April 2023 to announce him as the new actor.”
Credit: Deuxmoi.
Last week, BAFTA-nominated filmmaker Gurinder Chadha (Bend It Like Beckham) revealed at the Red Sea Film Festival in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia that Aaron Taylor-Johnson has been fiending for the role, via Variety.
If he gets it, she said he owes her a big thank-you ‘cos she fought for him to land his breakout role in Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging.
“I had to fight with Paramount Studios at the time,” she said of casting Taylor-Johnson as the lead in the 2008 flick.
“I think he’s going to be a big star,” she told skeptical Paramount executives at the time.
“I said, ‘trust me,’ and cast him, so, of course, I will take complete credit.”
Aaron Taylor-Johnson as the lead love interest in coming-of-age film Angus Thongs and Perfect Snogging. (Credit: Paramount Pictures)
Another insider recently told The Sun that Taylor-Johnson is “one of the front-runners” for the role following Daniel Craig‘s exit.
“[Aaron Taylor-Johnson] went for a screen test to be the next James Bond in September and producers and [Barbara Broccoli] loved him. He is now one of the front-runners,” the insider said.
This is supposed to be top secret spy news and the fact that it’s gotten out will probs be infuriating for the studio heads.
It was previously rumoured that Idris Elba was being considered for the role which excited fans who were keen to see some much-needed diversity in the franchise.
But back in September, Broccoli confirmed that Elba was out.
“He’s great. We love Idris,” Broccoli told Variety.
‘The thing is, it’s going to be a couple of years off. And when we cast Bond, it’s a ten to 12-year commitment. So he’s probably thinking, ‘Do I really want that thing? Not everybody wants to do that. It was hard enough getting Daniel Craig to do it.”
Elba also ruled himself out while speaking to The Wall Street Journal.
“I don’t have an opinion on who plays James Bond next,” he said.
“I think that it could be really well cast, and I look forward to whoever gets it. When I look in the mirror, I don’t see James Bond.”
In a new interview with Radio Times, longtime James Bond casting director Debbie McWilliams discussed the casting process for the new incarnation of the spy.
“When we started, it was a slightly different feel,” McWilliams said about the last search for a new 007 that ended with Daniel Craig being selected.
“We did look at a lot of younger actors, and I just don’t think they had the gravitas. They didn’t have the experience, they didn’t have the mental capacity to take it on, because it’s not just the part they’re taking on, it’s a massive responsibility.”
McWilliams added, “So we kind of scrubbed that idea and went back to the drawing board and started again.”
The team ultimately went with Craig who was in his 30s at the time, as is Aaron Taylor-Johnson.
It sounds like Aaron Taylor-Johnson as James Bond is a done deal but as always, it’s just a bunch of sneaky sources for now so let’s just see how this all plays out, shall we?
