Hugh Jackman says he was asked if he wanted to play James Bond

Hugh Jackman has revealed that he was once asked if he wanted to play James Bond, though he ended up missing out on that particular role to Daniel Craig.

Since Craig hung up the tuxedo and gun after No Time To Die, there's been plenty of speculation over who the next Bond will be.

This happens whenever a 007 leaves the franchise, but now we're doing it in the age of social media so you can get a side order of speculation with your speculation.

With Craig gone and almost certainly not coming back, the rumour mill over the next Bond has been churning out promising names left, right and centre.

Aaron Taylor-Johnson has been strongly linked with the iconic role, while long-standing favourite Idris Elba has seemingly distanced himself from sipping martinis and shooting people.

While he's not likely to be in the running this time around, Jackman has said that when the role of Bond was previously up for grabs, he did get asked if he would be interested.

BBC

The actor was appearing on The Graham Norton Show to plug his new movie The Son, when the conversation turned towards his desire to work with acting legend Dame Judi Dench, who was also on the sofa to talk about her movie Allelujah.

Dame Judi explained that she and Jackman previously 'did meet in a corridor, total strangers, and we had a great kiss', which sounds like the start of some celebrity fanfiction.

Jackman then explained that he'd have really liked the chance to work with Dame Judi, and almost came close when she was playing MI6 chief M in the James Bond franchise.

He said: "I wish I had worked with Dame Judi on anything and everything, there was a point where my agent rang me and said 'are you interested in playing Bond?'.

"Not that it was an offer for Bond, but it was one of those things that I have since found out when I was being asked if I was interested about eight other actors were being asked at the same time, including Daniel Craig.

"So there we go, and he killed it."

BBC

Hard luck, Hugh, but in fairness, Craig has been brilliant as 007 so, as good as Jackman might have been, James Bond fans should be glad with what they've got.

As for the next Bond, producers have said they're likely looking for a '30 something' to play the lead role, which would rule out some of the older and younger names in the running.

And Jackman wasn't the only actor we know missed out to Craig last time around, as Henry Cavill revealed he was told he made it down to the final two before Craig got the gig.

Cavill said that one of the reasons he lost out last time was because he was the younger option, though with the part of 007 up for grabs again, he's considered to be another potential favourite for the part.

Topics: Hugh Jackman, James Bond, Celebrity, The Graham Norton Show, TV and Film

Joe Harker

Joe graduated from the University of Salford with a degree in Journalism and worked for Reach before joining the LADbible Group. When not writing he enjoys the nerdier things in life like painting wargaming miniatures and chatting with other nerds on the internet. He's also spent a few years coaching fencing. Contact him via [email protected]

@MrJoeHarker