Idris Elba shoots down latest Bond rumors
British actor Idris Elba (Avengers: Infinity War) took to Twitter to dispell the latest rumor that he was being considered to play the next James Bond. Over the weekend, Elba tweeted out simply “Don’t believe the HYPE…,” likely referring to the false reports he was next in line to be 007 after current Bond Daniel Craig (Logan Lucky) retires from the franchise.
Don’t believe the HYPE…
— Idris Elba (@idriselba) August 12, 2018
The rumor started when U.K. tabloid The Daily Star reported there had been a conversation between director Anton Fuqua (The Equalizer 2) and longtime Bond producer Barbara Broccoli about bringing more diversity to the iconic role. Elba was reportedly considered to be “a possibility.” Fuqua’s camp, however, told The Hollywood Reporter that no such conversation had taken place. Elba’s tweet appears to further shoot down any notion that he was up for the Bond role.
Related: Idris Elba talks reinventing the Hunchback of Notre Dame for Netflix
Elba has been a fan-favorite to play creator Ian Fleming’s British superspy for years now. However, it appears that EON Productions, the company behind the Bond franchise, has not approached the 44-year-old actor. The role was first portrayed on screen by Sean Connery in 1963’s Dr. No. Since then, the role has also been played by Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan, and George Lazenby. The character is currently played by Craig.
For now, Craig will be suiting up for the role of Bond for the fifth and final time for director Danny Boyle (T2 Trainspotting) in as-yet-untitled 25th Bond movie. The movie is due to hit theaters in November 2019.
Elba, meanwhile, is set to play the villain in the upcoming Fast and Furious spinoff, Hobbs And Shaw. Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson (Skyscraper) and Jason Statham (The Meg) will be reprising their Fast and Furious characters.
(Photo credit: Getty Images)
