The iconic role of James Bond has been up for grabs since Daniel Craig’s Spectre, his penultimate Bond film that will climax with Bond 25 in 2019. Craig’s multi-film contract will be over by then, and the actor will be the happier party given how he said he’d rather slash his wrists than play Bond again. British actor Idris Elba has for years been considered a possible successor to Daniel Craig’s rogue MI6 agent, but other names like Charlize Theron, John Boyega and Daniel Kaluuya have popped up, even as we are reexamining race and gender in relation to one of the most beloved, still-running franchise in film history.
Now, British-Nigerian actor David Oyelowo, who came into mainstream focus after playing Martin Luther King Jr. in the 2014 film Selma, said in a recent Reddit AMA that he would consider playing James Bond in the future. But he remains pragmatic about the prospect of doing so. “Yes, I would consider it, but that doesn’t mean I would do it. I’m an actor who loves playing lots of different kinds of roles, and sometimes when you play such an iconic role, that can be more challenging thing to do.”
The Reddit AMA was to promote the release of his new film Gringo, featuring a cast of Charlize Theron, Joel Edgerton and Amanda Seyfried. Eon Productions has been the studio helming the James Bond films, and perhaps Oyelowo is trying to push himself as a worthy candidate to them? The opportunity window is still open for anyone to fill the Bond boots, so keep shooting your shot, David.
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