Gather round and listen carefully: we have new Bond intel that sounds pretty credible, all things considered.
While there’s currently quite the long list of contenders, it’s Aaron Taylor-Johnson who has apparently been nudged forward into pole position, according to some sources.
It was reported this weekend in The Sun that Taylor-Johnson recently went for a secret screen test with the producers including Barbara Broccoli at Pinewood studios, and it all went to plan: “Aaron went for a screen test to be the next Bond in September and producers and Barbara loved him. He is now one of the front-runners.”
Taylor-Johnson is no stranger to action movies, and clearly knows his way around a complicated stunt or two, having starred in the Kick-Ass movies, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Godzilla and Tenet.
But he’s also known for his serious acting credentials, which shot him to fame in his breakthrough role as a young John Lennon in Nowhere Boy, where he met his future wife, Sam Taylor-Johnson, who was director. The couple have now been married for ten years.
While recent whispers from the Bond camp suggested that stars such as Henry Cavill and Regé-Jean Page are current hot tickets in the line-up, the Taylor-Johnson news has come at a time where perhaps he had not really been considered as a serious contender.
But, aged 32, he fits within the new parameters of the potential actor. Back in October, producer Michael G. Wilson revealed that they’re gravitating towards actors in their thirties.
“We’ve tried looking at younger people in the past but trying to visualise it doesn’t work," he told Deadline. "Remember, Bond’s already a veteran, he’s had some experience – he’s a person who has been through the wars, so to speak. He’s probably been in the SAS or something. He isn’t some kid out of high school that you can bring in and start off [...] That’s why it works for a thirty-something.” Which is another tick in Taylor-Johnson’s box.
Taylor-Johnson would also be a great candidate for the “evolution of Bond”, which the producers have revealed they are centring for the next regeneration of the spy. Broccoli previously said that the script would pave the way for casting the new actor: “There isn’t a script and we can’t come up with one until we decide how we’re going to approach the next film because, really, it’s a reinvention of Bond. We’re reinventing who he is and that takes time.”
All in, sounds like Taylor-Johnson might need to start dusting off his tux.
