Idris Elba may be joining an elite group of actors who have played James Bond on the big screen. After years of back and forth, a new report from The Independent claims producers of the Sony franchise are seriously “leaning” toward Elba for the role of 007.
According to the latest report, Bond director Antonine Fuqua revealed in a conversation with producer Barbara Broccoli, that it is time for a non-white actor to play the iconic character. That being so, Elba is reportedly a front-runner out of all of the candidates.
There’s been quite a bit of controversy surrounding Elba and the Bond franchise. In 2014, emails that were released during a hack at Sony revealed that the then-studio co-chair Amy Pascal said Idris should be the next Bond. The following year, however, author of the Bond novels, Anthony Horowitz reportedly said that Elba was “too street” to play the character, sparking national outrage. He later apologized for his choice of words.
Although his name has often been tossed around in the conversation, Elba has constantly denied having any involvement with the franchise. He’s also previously suggested the character should be a woman. The new report may not be confirmed, but it does seem like a step in the right direction. Let’s cross our fingers and hope it actually happens this time.
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