Idris Elba shut down rumors that he was set to be next james bondclaiming that the claims are in no way “a truth”.
“I love the Bond franchise, I’m very close to the producers,” Elba said. The Guardian recently.
“We were all laughing at the rumors because they are just that.”
This is the first time Elba has spoken out on the lingering rumours, which have seen many claim Bond producers had been considering him for the star role for years.
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“I can’t speak for [the producers]but from my point of view, there was never any kind of truth in that,” he added. “It’s a compliment, and it’s an honor – but it’s not the truth.”
The rumors first surfaced in 2018 when a leaked email from Sony Pictures executive Amy Pascal revealed that she thought “Idris should be the next Bond.”
The idea gained traction when lead producer Barbara Broccoli claimed on Deadline’s Crew call podcast last year that Elba had “been part of the conversation” about who would play Bond next.
Broccoli later confirmed Deadline that “no one is in the running” for the role.
“There’s no script and we can’t come up with one until we decide how we’re going to approach the next movie because, really, it’s a reimagining of Bond. We’re reinventing who he is and that takes time,” she said at the time.
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Broccoli also revealed that filming for the next Bond film is at least two years away, with a release date not imagined before 2024 at the earliest, or even 2026.
Nevertheless, The sun claimed last year that Elba had pulled out of those talks because he was aiming to pursue other projects, not just Bond.
Talk with The GuardianElba sprang from his current action franchise, Luther, where he has been playing since 2010.
Comparing his character John Luther to Bond, and even Ethan Hunt to Tom Cruise in Impossible missionthe actor said: “They’re solitary characters who have conviction and style and grace, take out the bad guy. But I think with John there’s a kind of grounded relativity. That’s the space where I think I can take this franchise further and deeper.”
So far the actors are rumored to be on Bond’s calling card include Kick ass actor Aaron Taylor Johnson, Henry Cavill, Tom Hardy and Bridgerton actor Régé Jean-Page.
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