Idris Elba Explains Why He Walked Away From James Bond Casting Conversation

In the last few years Idris Elba has been a hot topic of conversation when it comes to the James Bond cast. It’s something many fans would have liked to see, but as time went on and the actor got older, it was less and less likely to happen. That’s not why he stopped talking about it, though.

During a recent interview with SmartLess, Elba explained why he finally walked away from the James Bond casting conversation by saying it stopped being funny when it came to race:

“The truth is, I’ve been complimented on this for a long time. I was like, ‘This is crazy! James Bond?’ We are all actors and we understand that role, it is one of the coveted ones [parts]. When I was asked to be James Bond he was like, ‘Okay, you’ve reached your peak.’ This is one of those things that the whole world has one vote on.

“It was a huge compliment that every corner of the world, except a few corners, which we won’t talk about, was really happy with the idea of ​​me being considered. Those who weren’t happy with the idea made it disgusting and disheartening because it became a race issue. It became nonsense, and I bore the brunt of it.”

The producers behind the James Bond franchise are currently looking for a new 007, but are looking for a younger actor, someone who will be able to grow into the character over the next few years. There’s probably something to that though… none of the younger actors have what it takes to play Bond!

Producer Michael G. Wilson said they are looking for a “30-year-old” actor to fill the role of Bond. Before they launched Daniel Craig in the role, they were trying to get younger, but it didn’t work out. Longtime casting director for the Bond franchise, Debbie McWilliams, explained why younger actors don’t really work for James Bond. When they were watching younger actors, he said they lacked the gravitas and mental capacity of the character. She said:

“When we started, it was a slightly different feeling. We looked at a lot of younger actors and I don’t think they had the gravitas. They didn’t have the experience, they didn’t have the mental capacity to take it, because it’s not just the part they’re taking, it’s a huge responsibility. So we scrapped that idea and went back to the drawing board and started again.

Eventually they will find an actor to play Bond and it will be interesting to see who that is. It will most likely not be Elba, but Tom Hanks think it should be! Hanks has previously clarified that the next James Bond should be Elba, saying, “You get this. James Bond has a license to kill. I would only issue that license to Idris Elba based on the work I’ve seen him do.

Hell yeah!