Contrary to previous reports that the iconic James Bond role is now down to Theo James and Tom Hiddleston, latest rumors seem to suggest that it would be 33-year-old Irish actor Aidan Turner who shall take the mantle from Daniel Craig.
However, there is still no confirmation yet from producer Barbara Brocolli regarding the choice of Turner as James Bond so it appears to be still speculation at this time.
While Theo James and Tom Hiddleston appear to be the frontrunners for the Agent 007 role, the British critics are reportedly in unison in pushing for Aidan Turner as the next actor to become the suave agent in Her Majesty’s Secret Service, notes the Express of UK.
Other than Hiddleston, James, and Turner, there are also rumors saying that Idris Elba is also in the running for the James Bond role. And if Elba is chosen, he shall become the first black James Bond.
Under a lot of scrutiny
The successor to Daniel Craig would be into a lot of scrutiny particularly from the British Board Film Classification (BBFC) since the actor’s last film as James Bond, “Spectre,” shown last year, became the most complained about film of 2015.
About 40 people have complained to the BBFC about the brutal and violent scenes in “Spectre,” which became the fourth most complained about film of the decade.
The complainants cited torture in the film which they found to be too distressing. There was also an eye-gouging scene that was also edited out to prevent the film from getting an R rating.
“Spectre” is not the first time that Daniel Craig’s violent take on James Bond had generated criticism. His first outing as Agent 007 in the movie “Casino Royale” in 2006 got twice as much complaints that “Spectre” did as it got 82 complainants.
But his subsequent movie as James Bond, “Quantum of Solace” only got six complainants to the BBFC.
A female James Bond?
With the race for the next James Bond actor seemingly still up in the air, “Twilight” actress Kristen Stewart unofficially put herself in the running to become the first female James Bond, reports USA Today.
Kristen Stewart made her unofficial pitch during the press round for her new film “Equals” with Nicholas Hoult, who happens to be pushing for Idris Elba as the next James Bond.
But K-Stew had a different idea when she was quoted as saying that an actress start off as the Bond girl and then everyone else thinks that she is just the girlfriend but before everyone realizes later, she is actually Bond. She added that in the trailer, it’s him and then comes the switch.
Of course, she meant it to be a joke but with the way she handles herself especially in wearing tux, Stewart really knows how to dress the suave part.
In fact, she already has her suit ready and it would really be fun to see a woman in the role who embodies the same aesthetic in her personal style.
Meawnhile, with the recent referendum on Brexit or the impending departure of the United Kingdom from the European Union in two years time, there have been talks in social media that the premiere spy on Her Majesty’s Secret Service, James Bond, would likely be affected because he would now need a visa to travel to other EU countries.
It was probably meant to soften the impact of Brexit but James Bond ends up being almost always thrown into the conversations as regards the political and economic repercussions of the decision of UK to leave the EU for good.
According to Martin Whalley, British Consul General in Chicago, James Bond is very fortunate to be working under Her Majesty’s Secret Service because it was just awarded this year as the UK’s most LGBT-friendly employer.
The statement triggered theories that James Bond may actually be gay and that the most famous secret agent from Britain actually had a secret of his own.
When asked by reporters of the possibility that James Bond may be gay following the award that the British secret service was vested early this year, Whalley made a resounding ‘Yes’ answer.