Rumour has it that when James Bond producer Barbara Broccoli was looking to recruit Pierce Brosnan's replacement, it was Daniel Craig's performance as a charming crook in 2004's Layer Cake that convinced her he was the man for the job.
Similarly, back in the late '60s, Roger Moore's turn as suave Simon Templar in The Saint helped bring him to the attention of producers . Ditto Brosnan and his role as charming private eye Remington Steele, in the '80s series of the same name.
Playing a Bond-esque role in a film or telly show can serve as an unofficial audition for the part of Her Majesty's finest. So when the time comes to replace Craig, the franchise could do a lot worse than one of this lot, all of whom have proved they've got the goods.
1. Aidan Turner – And Then There Were None
He was already a heartthrob off the back of roles in Being Human and Poldark, but it wasn't until BBC One's 2015 mini-series cast Turner as soldier of fortune Philip Lombard that his true Bond potential became apparent.
Clad in a tuxedo, his hair trimmed short, Aidan looked every inch the perfect Bond. He's dodged questions about the role in the past, though, which either means he really doesn't want it, or he really does and doesn't want to harm his chances.
2. Henry Cavill – The Man From U.N.C.L.E.
Cavill actually came close to playing Bond, reportedly getting down to the final two for Casino Royale – director Martin Campbell is said to have favoured Cavill, but the film's producers plumped for Craig.
Years later, he got the chance to show us what his 007 might've looked like, playing spy Napoleon Solo in 2015 film The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (based on the '60s TV series that was itself co-created by Bond author Ian Fleming).
Cavill told Digital Spy at the time that he considered his role as Solo to be "an entirely different thing" but later admitted he would consider it a "wonderful challenge" replacing Craig.
3. Idris Elba – Bastille Day / The Take
This terrorism thriller is now chiefly remembered for the controversy surrounding its release – first delayed following the November 2015 terror attacks in Paris, it was pulled from French theatres on July 17, 2016 (just four days after its release) after the attack in Nice, which occurred on Bastille Day.
The film was renamed The Take for its North American and home media release. But while its release was troubled and reviews were mixed, Rotten Tomatoes' critical consensus on Bastille Day says the movie "proves Idris Elba is an action hero in waiting" – indeed, there's a definite 007 quality to his CIA agent Sean Briar.
4. Tom Hardy – This Means War
From Bronson to Mad Max: Fury Road to Taboo, Hardy has carved out a niche as film and television's go-to wild man. So it's perhaps surprising that he's a bookies' favourite to replace Craig... until you remember his role in This Means War.
It's not exactly the brightest spot on his résumé, but McG's spy-themed romantic comedy, which cast Hardy as (British) CIA agent Tuck Hansen, did at least prove that he had the acting chops, and the lightness of touch, to play Bond.
"There's a saying amongst us in the fraternity of acting, that if you talk about it you're automatically out of the race," Hardy said of his Bond chances last year, but voiced his approval at the idea of his Inception and Dunkirk director Nolan getting a crack at the next film. Surely that's a match made in 00-heaven?
5. James Norton – McMafia
The first episode of BBC One thriller McMafia – which launched on New Year's Day – had Norton's character Alex Godman wearing a tuxedo in his first scene, and later don some trunks for a dip in the ocean (à la Craig in Casino Royale).
But, despite the surface similarities, Norton has insisted he's not angling for the role. "To be honest, I'm personally very thankful that Daniel Craig's going to do at least one more film," he said. "I'm a big fan of his."
All the same, the rumours persist. And while the character of Godman isn't quite the unshakable 007 we're all used to, Norton's casting might allow the franchise to more accurately realise the haunted, almost tragic Bond of Fleming's novels. (Sure, Craig was promoted as a "vulnerable" Bond in his debut, but by his second film, this is all but forgotten: Quantum of Solace sees a handcuffed 007 take out three highly-trained agents with his hands literally tied behind his back.)
6. Tom Hiddleston – The Night Manager
Nothing about his breakthrough role as Loki in the Marvel movies screamed "Bond", but once Hiddleston was put front-and-centre of the BBC's espionage thriller The Night Manager, the nation was practically screaming for him to be cast.
It's easy to see why – as MI5 recruit Jonathan Pine, he was enigmatic, charming and made for a convincing action hero. "I simply love the theme tune, the tropes and the mythology," Hiddleston enthused at the time. "I love the whole thing. If it ever came knocking, it would be an extraordinary opportunity."
Your move, Eon.
7. Rupert Friend – Homeland
An intelligence officer. A top assassin. Dedicated to his country. Troubled, with a spotted history of personal relationships. Friend's character Peter Quinn couldn't be more Bond, save for the Yank accent (not the actor's own).
He's rumoured to have gone up for Casino Royale and lost out to Craig, but Pierce Brosnan had a close call with Bond before landing the part – almost starring in 1987's The Living Daylights, which eventually starred Timothy Dalton. So a second chance for Friend wouldn't be unprecedented.
8. Michael Fassbender – Inglourious Basterds
Fassbender's performance as Lieutenant Archie Hicox in Tarantino's alternate-history war movie positively reeks of classic Bond: elegant, sophisticated and fearless. Further Bond-aping antics in the '60s set X-Men: First Class forced Fassbender to address the rumours and while he was "flattered" at being in contention back in 2011, he considered himself too old by 2016.
He's only 40, though – younger than both Dalton and Brosnan were in their respective debuts. So don't rule him out just yet.
9. Dan Stevens – The Guest
No-one watched the early series of Downton Abbey and thought that meek, slightly podgy Matthew Crawley was Bond material. But Dan Stevens surprised us all with 2014 thriller The Guest, getting ripped to play homicidal ex-soldier David.
Charismatic, with a dangerous edge, David was like Bond gone wrong. Like a few others on this list, Stevens has seemed skittish when asked if he'd be up for playing 007... which we're going to take as a sign that he's totally up for it.
10. Jamie Dornan – 50 Shades of Grey
No, honest. Stick with us on this one...
Dornan is often touted as a potential Bond, but there's precious little in his other major role – as psycho killer Paul Spector in TV series The Fall – that suggests he'd be a good fit (besides, y'know, that handsome mug).
No, it's actually his role in the ultimate guilty-pleasure film series that clinches it. Christian Grey is attractive, enigmatic and rocks a suit. Like the book Bond, he has a penchant for self-loathing. He's also a sexually aggressive, sadistic sociopath, which, if you were feeling ungenerous, could also fit as a description of a certain secret agent...
