Following their breaking of the news that Denis Villeneuve would direct the new James Bond adventure for Amazon MGM Studios, Variety has continued their hit rate with more information about the new instalment, including going as far as naming some of the actors on the shortlist.
According to the outlet, Villeneuve only has a one-movie deal in place. There would be an option to extend, but given his profile, multi-picture deals are hard to lock down. Villeneuve also does not have the final cut. This is traditional for Bond movies, and huge franchise pictures.
A shortlist for both the writers and the lead actor apparently already exists, and things are now moving at pace.
The big news is the age of the actors. When Connery made his debut, he was 32. Lazenby was 29. Moore was 46. Dalton was 41. Brosnan was 42. Craig was 38.
When Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson were still mobilising this instalment, they were very firmly looking at actors in their mid-to-early 30s, finally putting names like Idris Elba and Henry Cavill out of the running. Their goal was to have somebody in the role for over a decade. It turns out Amazon is skewing even younger.
They are looking at actors even younger than that. The casting guidelines apparently state the actor must be from the Commonwealth and late 20s to early 30s. Here are 3 of those on the list that are named by the outlet.
First up is Tom Holland, thought to be coming to the end of his run as Spider-Man, and who has always expressed a desire for the role. Spider-Man and Uncharted showed he can handle big productions and stunt-heavy action. Work on movies like Cherry has shown he could break out of the spandex. He has a leading role in Nolan’s The Odyssey, but maintains a large fan base, particularly among young women. He is 29 years old, and would be 30 – 32 at the time of release.
Next up is Harris Dickinson. He is also 29 and has appeared in wide-ranging projects from Baby Girl and Where The Crawdads Sing through to Triangle Of Sadness and The Kings Man. He nearly joined the Royal Marines in real life, and is rated as an actor with serious dramatic potential. As an up-and-coming talent, he has already won awards.
The third name mentioned is Jacob Elordi. Appearing in Euphoria and Saltburn, this Australian actor narrowly lost out on the role of Superman to David Corenswet. He is 28 years old and a BAFTA winner.
Aaron Taylor-Johnson was thought to be a favorite of the old Bond regime, and he is 35 years old already.
The report says a 2028 release date for the next Bond adventure is likely due to the size of the movie and the scheduling required. One thing is for sure, though. If these names are being allowed to be run up the flagpole by Variety, then they are definitely among the names on the shortlist. The producers are watching and waiting to see what the reaction is out there online and in the real world.
