Theo James drops out of next James Bond race as two clear favourites remain
Theo James has exited the contest to take on the role of James Bond, and two big favourites have now emerged to become the next 007.
The biggest role in spy fiction has been left open since Daniel Craig's departure in 2021's No Time to Die, which saw Bond sacrificing himself as navy missiles rained down on the island base of the villain, bringing to a close Craig's tenure as Bond, the longest of any actor.
For his part, Craig has since taken on the role of the verbose and empathetic detective Benoit Blanc in the Knives Out series, switching out Bond's RP accent for a Texas drawl.
But while Craig is off on adventures in mansions, troubled churches, and yes, island lairs, speculation on who will replace him is starting to escalate.
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Theo James had been a favourite for the role, having the dashing British charm and good looks, and speculation about his taking it on had started to spread.
But now James appears to have put those rumours to bed in an interview with GQ which put the question to him.
"I’m definitely too old now, for one,” he said, though this is not strictly true.
At 41 James is still four years younger than Roger Moore was when he took on the role, and Moore would play Bond until he was 57, while Pierce Brosnan was 42 when he became Bond.
Nonetheless, James explained that this is not the only factor for him, implying that the iconic role is one that can come to dominate an actor's career.
"That would be an example of a place you could never come back from,” he said.
While names like Idris Elba and Jacob Elordi have been floating around, and the writer confirmed as Steven Knight of Peaky Blinders, there are two clear bookies' favourites for who will next don the tuxedo and brandish the Walther PPK and gadget watch, so let's take a look at them both.
Callum Turner
Turner currently has odds of 5/4 with bookies William Hill and 7/4 with Ladbrokes that he will become the next Bond.
The British actor started out his career as a model, before breaking into TV with a role in 2012's The Town, and having his first film credit in 2014's Queen and Country, which admittedly does have a Bond-like ring to it.
More recently, Turner had a role in the Fantastic Beasts sequels, though the series would be axed after the third movie.
He was nominated for Best Actor at the BAFTA TV Awards in 2020 for his performance in The Capture.
Turner is also married to singer Dua Lipa, who he wed in a ceremony in Italy.
As for his thoughts on being Bond, Turner has been very tight-lipped, refusing to comment on multiple occasions, including in an interview with Esquire.
After not commenting on his wedding to Dua Lipa, Turner was asked about becoming Bond, replying: “I’m not going to comment on that either."
Jack Lowden
Scottish actor Lowden currently has odds of 7/4 with William Hill, and 6/4 with Ladbrokes, suggesting it's a close thing between the two favourites.
Lowden already has experience playing roles in spy thrillers, though admittedly not so much the suave super-spy that is Bond
This was in the Apple TV+ series Slow Horses, which follows the exploits of the bungling department where disgraced intelligence agents are put out to pasture or sent to rot.
It stars Gary Oldman as the foul-mouthed Jackson Lamb, while Lowden plays River Cartwright, a promising MI5 agent sent there after a training exercise blunder.
In fact, the author of this very article themselves asked Lowden about the prospect of taking on the role of Bond in an interview after season three of Slow Horses was released in 2023, though Lowden wasn't giving anything away.
He told UNILAD: “I still really am not over the fact that Daniel Craig doesn't do it anymore. I think an older James Bond would be fantastic."
More recently, Richard Osman suggested Lowden as a frontrunner on his podcast The Rest is Entertainment.
“Someone told me for definite who the new Bond is the other day, but I mean that’s happened before,” said Osman. “The name I’ve heard is Jack Lowden.”
Topics: Film, James Bond, Daniel Craig, News
Kit Roberts