Back in February 2025, after nearly four years of uncertainty following Daniel Craig’s COVID-delayed finale as 007, the news finally dropped that Amazon would take creative control of Ian Fleming’s most famous character following a billion dollar acquisition, thus ending the Broccoli family’s multi-generational stint as able custodians of the James Bond franchise. Naturally, the internet went into overdrive with speculation (Christopher Nolan and Alfonso Cuarón were both rumoured to be in contention) before the shock announcement that Canadian auteur Denis Villeneuve was on board to direct.
Unsurprisingly, this has created more questions than answers. How did Amazon convince such an idiosyncratic filmmaker to take the job, especially after a decade of IP movies including Blade Runner 2049 and a trilogy of Dune movies? What direction is Amazon planning to go in with Villeneuve’s brilliant but frankly gloomy style? And most importantly, what does this all mean when it comes to casting such an era-defining role? Use our guide, ranked from least to most likely, to find out who is in the running to be the next James Bond and find out where to watch some of their most celebrated work in the list below.
Idris Elba
Idris Elba as Bond feels like a rumor as old as time. Whispers of the actor’s viability began to circle as far back as 2010, which makes sense as Elba’s run as Stringer Bell on The Wire, originally airing in the US from 2002-2004, only made it to the BBC in 2008. Craig first met Barbara Broccoli in 2004, but the idea of a Black actor playing Bond had yet to enter the mainstream.
By the time Craig was signing off, Elba was already 49—not a million miles off Roger Moore (45) and Timothy Dalton (40) when they first took the role (and there has been some talk of a standalone “old Bond”), but Amazon will be planning for the future, at least for now.
What the bookies are saying: an understandable longshot at 25/1.
Tom Holland
In the last few days, a supposedly leaked wish list of actors (we’re not buying it) has been doing the rounds in more speculative corners of the internet. On top of that pile is Tom Holland. The charismatic star is probably the most sought-after British actor in the world right now and, at 29, would rival George Lazenby as the youngest actor to ever take the Bond role—but we won’t be betting the house on it.
Bond has always favored the up-and-comer: an actor who can fully inhabit the role, both on-screen and, almost as importantly, in the public psyche. When we think of Holland, we already think of Peter Parker and the awkwardly Bond-adjacent Nathan Drake in Uncharted. (Very soon, we will think of Telemachus, too.) No doubt Amazon would love to make that kind of bold statement but cramming presumably multiple 007 movies into Holland’s packed schedule seems highly unlikely.
What the bookies are saying: 14/1 in most places, which seems way too short.
Harris Dickinson
Wonderfully tall, effortlessly cool, endlessly talented and, as anyone who saw Babygirl can attest, capable of exuding a particular kind of sexual energy, the London-born Harris Dickenson seems to have all the right attributes for what we can only assume will be a darker approach from Villeneuve. And yet, something about it just doesn’t feel right.
Since breaking out in Eliza Hittman’s Beach Rats in 2017, Dickinson has remained admirably esoteric with his choice of roles. He also recently won favorable reviews at the Cannes Film Festival for his directorial debut, Urchin, and will likely be keen to direct more; so the idea of filling his schedule with a multi-film deal would be about as impractical as it would be off-brand. Dickinson is already attached to play John Lennon, a very different kind of English legend, in two-time Bond director Sam Mendes’ Beatles anthology movies in 2026—a role of similar scale, perhaps, but we expect it to ultimately be more an exception in Dickinson’s filmography than a rule.
What the bookies are saying: with some places offering as long as 12/1 and as short as 5/2, the jury seems out on this one, but we would err on the side of caution.
Jacob Elordi
Despite being the supposed third favorite on the fanciful Amazon wish list after Holland and Dickinson, Jacob Elordi actually seems the most likely of the three. And still, we have our doubts. At 28, the Australian would not only be the youngest to ever hold the famous Walter PP7 on the big screen, he would also be the first born outside of Ireland and the United Kingdom to take on the role.
All that said, Elordi proved his chops at playing a similar class of Englishman in Saltburn, enough to secure the role of Heathcliff (and presumably show those other chops) in Emerald Fennell’s upcoming adaptation of Wuthering Heights. The thought of working with Villeneuve will appeal to an actor who has always shown an appreciation for auteur filmmakers but similar to Dickinson, it’s just a little off-brand.
What the bookies are saying: a relatively long 12/1 seems accurate.
Jack Lowden
In any other timeline this would make all kinds of sense. After four (soon to be five) seasons of playing River Cartwright on Slow Horses, Jack “Mr. Saoirse Ronan” Lowden has all the training one could ever need to play a quick witted and resourceful MI6 operative. That excellent show, weirdly enough, is also still somehow just about obscure enough that Lowden could make the transition without bringing the baggage of an awkwardly similar character with him; and more than any actor we’ve mentioned so far, the 35-year-old Englishman is genuinely funny.
Unluckily for him, Villeneuve coming on board has probably hurt his chances. That said, the director did once hire Ryan Gosling to play a replicant, so who knows?
What the bookies are saying: ranging from 5/1 to 12/1. The latter looks a little tasty.
Henry Cavill
Henry Cavill is, in many ways, a perfect fit. You sense that if you were to ask a generative AI learning model to create a James Bond movie, it would probably conjure this 200-pound, devilishly handsome slab of a man in the role. Strangely, that obviousness might be what kills his chances the most.
Amazon will be looking to immediately put its stamp on these movies, and the thought of casting a 42-year-old actor who feels as if he has been circling the character for years could be seen as a lack of imagination. Plus, you know, he is still Superman—at least for a little bit.
What the bookies are saying: everything from 4/1 to 10/1, but Cavill feels like the least of the most-likelies.
Scott Rose-Marsh
Without many internationally recognized credits to his name, Scott Rose-Marsh is certainly a dark horse amongst the frontrunners who have emerged with the Amazon wish list. Born in 1988, Rose-Marsh’s route to fame has taken some time. He was working in a call center as recently as 2019, apparently having struggled with addiction after leaving acting school. His luck changed when Stephen Merchant saw a video of him and cast him in his acclaimed six-part TV show The Outlaws.
Were Rose-Marsh to land the role of Bond, it would be a bit of a fairy tale story and not out of keeping with the likes of Craig, who was probably around a similar level of fame when he was cast in Casino Royale. Amazon might just appreciate that kind of narrative.
What the bookies are saying: anything from 10/1 to 5/2, but having been slashed from 100/1 as recently as last week, he is trending.
Theo James
Velvet voiced, obscenely handsome and, as fans of The Monkey and The White Lotus can attest, capable of charmingly self-deprecating humor, Theo James has everything you could want in a 007.
At 40-years-old and still not quite a household name, he perfectly fits the model of a Broccoli-era casting. Unfortunately for James, the early indicators suggest that Amazon is planning to go with a more youthful approach. Consider this one a maybe, but a hard maybe.
What the bookies are saying: as short as 2/1 in most places. Everyone from here can be considered a favourite.
Aaron Pierre
If someone had asked us for odds on Aaron Pierre as the next James Bond a few months ago, we would have told them to save their money-pennies. Now, the electric star of Rebel Ridge looks hard to ignore. The 31-year-old, blue-eyed, LAMDA-trained actor has already appeared in Othello in Shakespeare’s Globe theatre, played Malcolm X in the anthology series Genius, and provided the voice of Mufasa in Barry Jenkins’ Mufasa: The Lion King.
Whether or not the actor can deliver quips perhaps remains to be seen, but Villeneuve won’t be too concerned with all that. And what better way for Amazon to plant its flag in the franchise than by casting the first non-white actor to ever take the role.
What the bookies are saying: at 5/2 in most places, Pierre has raced toward the front of the pack with alarming momentum.
Aaron Taylor-Johnson
In many ways, it feels like Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s career has been building toward this moment. He’s been working in movies since he was ten years old; is currently reminding everyone of his physical intensity in 28 Years Later; and did the funny/haughty English thing as recently as Nosferatu. With The King’s Man, he arguably played a version of Bond as recently as 2021, but in a role small enough as to not be a distraction. He’s been involved in some of the biggest franchises in the world, though without ever quite breaking into the A-list of leading men. He also has the edge and intensity of a character actor, which Villeneuve will appreciate, and with films like Kick-Ass and Bullet Train, has proven himself capable of performing comedy and action at the same time.
At this point, the only thing working against him is his lengthy connection to the part. In a way, he almost seems a part of the Broccoli era (it’s rumored they had a meeting as recently as 2022). The only question is, will Amazon be able to accept that?
What the bookies are saying: with evens in most places, ATJ remains the man to beat. But we sense that grip is loosening.
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