The role of James Bond, the legendary fictional M16 spy has been passed down to Aaron Taylor-Johnson, the 33-year-old English actor known for his roles in “Bullet Train” and “Anna Karenina.”
A recent report for the U.K. paper, The Sun, claims that Taylor-Johnson has been formally offered the role, though he has not officially accepted it.
“Bond is Aaron’s job, should he wish to accept it. The formal offer is on the table and they are waiting to hear back,” a source from Eon Productions told The Sun.
“As far as Eon is concerned, Aaron is going to sign his contract in the coming days and they can start preparing for the big announcement.”
Taylor-Johnson was up against several rumored Bond candidates such as Henry Golding, Idris Alba, Tom Hardy, Tom Holland, Henry Cavill, Cillian Murphy and Tom Hiddleston, per Vogue.
When asked last week about if he would fill the role, Taylor-Johnson responded: “I find it charming and wonderful that people see me in that role. I take it as a great compliment,” per The Sun.
Former James Bond Actors
In the six decades since James Bond came onscreen, seven actors have taken up the role. The most recent Bond actor, Daniel Craig, gave his last performance as the M16 spy in the 2021 Bond film, “No Time to Die.”
Here are the seven men who have played James Bond.
1. Sean Connery (1962-1967, 1971, 1983)
Sean Connery was selected at 32 years old to play 007. After six Bond films and a 12-year break from the character, the Scot reprised the role in 1983 for “Never Say Never Again.”
“They were exciting and funny and had good stories and pretty girls and intriguing locations,” Connery told IndieWire in 2020 of his experience playing the British spy. “And it didn’t take anything for granted.”
Connery remains the only Bond actor to ever win an Oscar. In 1988, he won best actor for his role in “The Untouchables.”
Bond films: “Dr No,” “From Russia With Love,” “Goldfinger,” “Thunderball,” “You Only Live Twice,” “Diamonds are Forever,” “Never Say Never Again.”
2. David Niven (1967)
Author of the “James Bond” series Ian Fleming initially hoped Niven would play 007 but producers instead landed on Connery to play the role. Compared to other Bond actors, Niven is one of the older stars to play the M16 spy — he was 56 when he starred in “Casino Royale.”
“Fleming wanted David Niven, whereas the producers were testing out Cary Grant, who ultimately proved to be too expensive. Their last resort was to go to an unknown: Sean Connery,” per Vulture.
“It wasn’t until after dinner with Connery at the Savoy, where a female guest called him ‘very attractive,’ that he came around. ... Fleming later said that while Connery was ‘not quite the idea’ he had of Bond, but ‘he would be if [he] wrote the books over again.’”
Bond films: “Casino Royale.”
3. George Lazenby (1969)
George Lazenby only played Bond in a single film, “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service” — but his performance earned him a nomination for best new star at the 1970 Golden Globe awards.
In 2017, Lazenby chronicled his wild journey from Australian used car salesman to James Bond actor in a Hulu documentary, “Becoming Bond.”
Filmmakers wanted Lazenby to reprise Bond for a second film, but he turned down the role. He doesn’t regret that decision.
“Right when I gave up Bond I started growing out my hair and beard. I was staying in a house with George Drummond, who was one of richest men in England. I mean the man was The Queen’s banker. So we had this five-bedroom apartment and he bought a Lamborghini. He parked it out front and then pissed off to Barbados for a month. So I had his Lamborghini and the place to myself,” Lazenby told Men’s Journal in 2017.
“I tend to forget that I even played James Bond until somebody reminds me. But I am glad I got to share the story.”
Bond films: “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service.”
4. Roger Moore (1973 -1985)
Roger Moore has starred in seven bond films — tied with Sean Connery for the lead.
Following Moore’s death in 2017, Pierce Brosnan (a fellow Bond actor), wrote Moore a touching essay in Variety.
“I had discovered the movies and Bond, James Bond. ... And that’s when I discovered my first real hero, Roger Moore,” writes Brosnan.
“We fell in love with a magnificent actor. Never forgetting the audience, never letting the begrudgers in, Sir Roger enthralled the world for many years as Bond. Sir Roger played it to the end with impeccable good manners and a wicked sense of irony that was born of years upon the stage. He saved our world, for heaven’s sake, with his movies as James Bond.”
Bond films: “Live and Let Die,” “The Man with the Golden Gun,” “The Spy Who Loved Me,” “Moonraker,” “For Your Eyes Only,” “Octopussy,” “A View to a Kill.”
5. Timothy Dalton (1987-1989)
In just two films, Timothy Dalton played James Bond. When it came time to film a third, he “respectfully declined.”
“‘Well, I’ve actually changed my mind a little bit. I think that I’d love to do one. Try and take the best of the two that I have done, and consolidate them into a third,’” Dalton recalled telling the producer, per The Week.
“And he said, quite rightly, ‘Look, Tim. You can’t do one. There’s no way, after a five-year gap between movies that you can come back and just do one. You’d have to plan on four or five.’ And I thought, oh, no, that would be the rest of my life. Too much. Too long. So I respectfully declined.”
Bond films: “The Living Daylights,” “Licence to Kill.”
6. Pierce Brosnan (1995-2002)
After playing agent 007 in four films, Pierce Brosnan showed interest in a making a fifth — but the franchise was ready for a new star. He remains grateful for the four films he got.
“There’s no regret. I do not let regret come into my world. … It just leads to more misery and more regrets,” Brosnan told The Guardian in 2020.
“Bond is the gift that keeps giving and has allowed me to have a wonderful career,” he continued “Once you’re branded as a Bond, it’s with you for ever, so you better make peace with it and you’d better understand that when you walk through those doors and pick up the mantle of playing James Bond.”
Bond films: “GoldenEye,” “Tomorrow Never Dies,” “The World Is Not Enough,” “Die Another Day.”
7. Daniel Craig (2006-2021)
At 56, Daniel Craig has been rumored to get replaced as James Bond for a handful of years now. In 2021, he made his fifth and final film as the M16 spy in “No Time to Die.” Before parting ways with the legendary franchise, Craig spoke candidly about what is is like playing the intelligence officer.
“This may be hard to believe,” Craig told The London Times, “but I love the fact I’m Bond. We’re in rare air, making Bond movies. It is one of the most intense, fulfilling things I’ve ever done, but it takes a lot of energy and I’m getting old. I’m getting creaky.”
Craig says he will miss the friends he has made working on the Bond movies.
“I’ll miss my friends,” he told The London Times. “I’ve worked with many of these people for 15 years now, and that will be a real jar. I’ll see them again, but this is a special atmosphere, on a Bond set.”
Bond films: “Casino Royale,” “Quantum of Solace,” “Skyfall,” “Spectre,” “No Time to Die.”