When it comes to pop culture icons who’ve endured for decades upon decades and have subsequently been recast several times over, James Bond is most definitely up there with guys like Superman and Batman. In fact, moviegoers often can’t wait for one actor to pass the torch before speculating on who’ll replace them.
So, with Daniel Craig set to headline at least one more film that’s yet to be given an official title, betting odds are already being placed on who’ll take up the mantle in what we can only refer to as “Bond 26” for the time being. In fact, the landscape has somewhat been altered due to recent events, so let’s discuss that right now.
Believe it or not, Idris Elba’s odds have been reduced from 8-1 to 4-1, and here’s why, according to a spokesman for the bookmakers who spoke to Express:
“Luther is one of the nation’s favourites and its return has seen Idris Elba appear almost everywhere over the last few weeks. He’ll be back on our screens soon and fans clearly can’t wait, as they’ve been backing him to be the next 007 this week too. It’s clear that there are a lot of people out there that think he could well be the perfect person to be the next James Bond, despite the fact that he has played it down in the past.”
Apparently, Elba’s return to Luther is expected to reignite the British public’s interest, even if he’s supposedly out of the running. As it happens, a fair amount of Americans also support the idea of him being the next 007, so anything is possible at this point.
When it comes to other top contenders, Tom Hiddleston currently sits at 6-4 and James Norton finds himself at 2-1. Henry Golding, meanwhile, lags behind at 20-1. Personally, I’m of the ilk favoring Henry Cavill, so my fingers remain crossed.
In my view, someone in their mid-30’s should be cast as James Bond because it’s become par for the course for actors to star in at least four consecutive films in the franchise, George Lazenby and Timothy Dalton excluded. As such, each installment will probably be a minimum of three years apart, so the studio will need someone able-bodied and to age gracefully with the series.
Based on that logic, Elba would be excluded unless he signs on for one or two movies. Hiddleston and Norton would certainly qualify, but I’m admittedly not as hot on the idea of them taking over for some intangible reason. To me, at least, Cavill just appears to have that quintessential Bond look and the chops to go along with it, so we’ll have to wait and see what happens.