Next James Bond Odds: Theo James Closing On Aaron Taylor-Johnson For 007 Role

Fans of James Bond are still eagerly awaiting news relating to the next film in the popular spy series.

It’s been three years since Daniel Craig announced that No Time To Die would be his last performance as 007, but there has been deathly silence from the production team about his replacement.

Aaron Taylor-Johnson remains the hot favourite to be offered the part for the 26th movie in the franchise’s history and The Sun even claimed he had been offered the role in March, but a couple of new names have emerged on betting sites in recent weeks.

Next Actor To Play James Bond Odds

Craig’s fifth and final entry as secret agent 007 enjoyed its world premiere at the Royal Albert Hall in London on September 28, 2021 after a long delay due to the Covid-19 pandemic. 

Wider releases followed in the United Kingdom and the United States, and in spite of concerns about people’s appetite to return to cinemas, No Time To Die made just under $775 million at the box office.

Co-starring Academy Award winners Rami Malek and Christoph Waltz, it grossed more than $600 million in territories outside of the USA and Canada - a sure-fire example of the universal appeal that this particular franchise enjoys.

Here, Gambling.com takes a look at the names in the frame to wear the tuxedo when the next film is finally announced.

Taylor-Johnson Still Ahead In Bond Battle

After the esteem that Craig was held in during his stint as Bond, producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson are understandably being very careful about who they select to take on the iconic role.

Sean Connery, George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton and Pierce Brosnan have all been handed the prestigious role over the last six decades.

Wilson told Deadline in October 2022 that the next Bond is likely to be a “30-something” which would potentially rule out the likes of Idris Elba and Tom Hardy, who were among the frontrunners in the early days of the next James Bond market.

Broccoli also explained to Variety magazine that playing Bond is a “10, 12-year commitment”, so it wouldn’t make sense to cast an actor in his forties.

From that perspective, 34-year-old Englishman Taylor-Johnson appears to be in the driving seat to be offered the role.

In addition to featuring in films such as Kick-Ass, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Tenet and Bullet Train, Taylor-Johnson also portrayed John Lennon in Nowhere Boy and won a Best Supporting Actor Golden Globe for his role in Nocturnal Animals.

Taylor-Johnson is the 11/10 favourite to wear the famous tuxedo, but he now faces stiff competition from his co-star in his latest film.

Gentleman James Has The Name And Looks 

Theo James plays alongside Taylor-Johnson in upcoming heist thriller Fuze which will be released by Sky Cinema, probably in 2025.

James certainly has the looks and sophisticated voice to play Bond, and he has proved his versatility with a range of roles over the years. 

Rising to prominence as Tobias Eaton in the film trilogy Divergent between 2014-16, James’ performances went down a storm with teenagers.

More recently he shone as Cameron Sullivan in the second series of HBO’s The White Lotus which won a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble.

The 39-year-old from High Wycombe has found a new army of fans in Guy Ritchie’s black comedy The Gentleman in which he plays Eddie Horniman, recently named the Duke of Halstead in his father’s will.

In an interview on the Jess Cagle Show on radio station SiriusXM in 2023, James admitted he loves James Bond, but thinks he wouldn't be right for the part.

He said: "I’m a big fan of the concept of it. I loved Casino Royale and some of the Sean Connery movies, but I think they need to do something else. They need to really go with a reinvention of it in a different way and that wouldn’t be me.”

Whether Broccoli and Wilson decide to go down a different route remains to be seen, but if they stick with a winning formula then James looks to be in the frame at 5/2.

Mescal Could Shoot To Thrill

Paul Mescal burst onto our screens as Connell in a TV adaptation of Sally Rooney’s best-seller Normal People.

The Irishman has time on his side at just 28 and he would perhaps be in the crosshairs of the Bond production team if they decide to revamp the suave British spy as a sensitive soul.

That said, Mescal bulked up for his role as Lucius Verus in Ridley Scott’s star-studded Gladiator II, one of the most highly-anticipated films of 2024.

Gaining 18 pounds of muscle on a diet of sweet potato and ground beef will certainly be an advantage, but the feeling remains he is perhaps too indie for such a mainstream role.

UK bookmakers disagree though and they make him 4/1 to slip into an Aston Martin and go save the world.

Turner Among The Other Leading Candidates

At 34, Callum Turner is young enough to perhaps play Bond for a number of movies, bringing continuity to the role. 

Turner has twice been nominated for a BAFTA for Breakthrough Brit in 2014 and for Best Actor in 2020 for his role in The Capture, a British mystery thriller directed by Ben Chanan. 

The actor, who is dating pop sensation Dua Lipa, featured in The Only Living Boy in New York in 2017 and is 4/1 on betting apps to be the next Bond. 

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Happy Valley Star Norton A Strong Candidate

James Norton is another actor whose versatility has earned him plenty of TV and film roles over the years, but he is perhaps best known for playing psychopath Tommy Lee Royce in hit BBC series Happy Valley.

Before then, the Londoner, who was brought up in the countryside of North Yorkshire, charmed ITV audiences for the first four series of detective drama Grantchester in which he played Anglican vicar Sidney Chambers.

However, Norton also proved himself in 2022 spy film Rogue Agent playing Robert Hendy-Freegard, a convicted fraudster who tricked and convinced several people that he was an MI5 agent.

Norton has been one of the favourites for the Bond gig for the last two years and is 5/1 favourite with specials betting sites.

Page Ready For Latest Bond Chapter

Rege-Jean Page is 7/1 to follow in the footsteps of Daniel Craig and take on the role of Bond. 

Page's movie credits include Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 1, Mortal Engines and The Gray Man. 

Next year, the Bridgerton and Waterloo Road star will appear on our cinema screens in Black Bag, an American spy thriller directed by Steven Soderbergh and written by David Koepp.

Featuring in another spy movie might rule Page out of being the next Bond, but you never know.

Damson Idris Could Get A Phone Call

Idris Elba has fallen down the pecking order to feature, with odds of 20/1 available, but his namesake Damson Idris is trending in the right direction when it comes to Bond betting.

Not necessarily a household name when it comes to the world of film, Idris is perhaps best known for his six-season spell as the lead in Snowfall - an American crime drama series co-created by the late John Singleton.

The 32-year-old hails from Peckham in London, and is listed as a 7/1 shot for the role.

Cavill In Running For Another Top Spy Role

Even though he turned 41 in May, Henry Cavill (8/1) has been one of the frontrunners to play 007 ever since Craig decided to call it quits.

He has taken on some iconic roles on the silver screen in recent years, such as Superman, Sherlock Holmes and Napoleon Solo in the film adaptation of the 1960s TV spy series The Man from U.N.C.L.E. 

Despite being an American character, the similarities between Solo and Bond are quite striking. Even if the Bond role doesn’t come his way, Cavill has made a steady contribution to the spy genre outside of his work as Solo. 

He showcased his action chops as a support player in Mission: Impossible - Fallout and can also be seen in the action spy films Argylle and Guy Ritchie's The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare later on this year.

Cavill also doffed his hat to Bond in a No 1 Botanicals advert a couple of years ago in which he is measured for a new suit on Savile Row and gives a knowing smile when he sees an Aston Martin upon leaving the tailor’s.

Argylle director Matthew Vaughn claimed Cavill was “born to play Bond” and looking at him, it’s hard to disagree.

Pierre And Murphy Outsiders For 007

Aaron Pierre may be an unfamiliar name to many, but the 30-year-old Londoner is 9/1 to land the iconic Bond role.

Pierre won rave reviews for playing Francis in the Canadian drama Brother and he is in TIME Magazine’s top 100 Next list following his portrayal of Malcolm X in the Genius series.

Cillian Murphy is perhaps best known for playing Tommy Shelby on Birmingham gangster series Peaky Blinders and he won an Oscar for the lead role in Oppenheimer.

At 48, time is not on Murphy’s side and he is 10/1 to play Bond.

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Elsewhere, Slumdog Millionaire’s Dev Patel is 12/1 and Slow Horses actor Jack Lowden is 14/1.

Gangs of London stars Sope Dirisu and Paapa Essiedu, Bodies actor Jacob Fortune-Lloyd, BAFTA nominated Harris Dickinson, the Bodyguard’s Richard Madden, Venom’s Tom Hardy and Poldark’s Aidan Turner are all 16/1.