Gary Oldman has walked back his comments about the next James Bond, saying he does not know who has been chosen to replace Daniel Craig as 007, but he is “hoping” it’s Jack Lowden.
The Oscar-winning actor caused a stir earlier this week when he said that Bond producers had “made their choice” and that his “fingers are crossed” for his Slow Horses co-star Lowden.
His comments sent Bond speculation into overdrive, especially considering Lowden had been named one of the favourites for the role.
However, Oldman has now clarified that he meant to say that one of the actors on the shortlist had already been chosen.
Speaking to journalist Josh Horowitz during a Visionaries session at the Toronto International Film Festival, Oldman said: “There’s six people on a shortlist. I heard a rumour that they’ve picked James Bond, but they haven’t announced it yet, which is their prerogative.”
“So I do not know [who has got the part], but I’m hoping it’s Jack,” he said.
open image in galleryOldman clarified that he “did not volunteer” the information, but was asked about it in an interview. “And I said, ‘Yeah, I hear that they’ve cast it, but obviously we’re waiting for them to announce it,” he said.
He continued: “I said, ‘Fingers crossed for my mate Jack.’ And that was it. Like I’m in with the Bond people. I’ve got a red thumb. So, let me please put the record straight, I do not know who the next James Bond is.”
The next Bond film will be directed by Dune filmmaker Denis Villeneuve, with Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight writing the screenplay and Amy Pascal and David Heyman producing. Villeneuve, Pascal, and Heyman have been involved in the casting process, while casting director Nina Gold is also working on the search.
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Other actors also reported to be in the running to become Bond include Callum Turner, Jacob Elordi, Harris Dickinson, Paul Mescal, and Jack Barton.
The Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy star confirmed the same to Deadline later, telling the publication that the headlines “made it sound like I had a hotline to Denis [Villeneuve]”.
“So they took it to the very edge of misquoting me, moved things around like they do, and it became a headline,” he said.
Oldman, who plays irascible intelligence officer Jackson Lamb opposite Lowden’s ambitious MI5 agent River Cartwright on Slow Horses, said the cast were also “rooting for him”, prompting vigorous nods from the team around him.
He added he had since spoken to Lowden by phone to explain what had happened, with the actor replying: “Oh, they do that kind of thing, the f***ers.”
open image in gallerySpeaking to The Independent back in June, casting director Debbie McWilliams, who helped select previous Bond actors such as Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan, and Craig, said “it is absolutely essential that [Bond] retains a total enigma”.
“I don’t want to see [Elordi, Turner, Dickinson et al] as Bond because we now know so much about them,” she added.
“We want to know as little about them personally as possible, because that’s what spies are. We don’t need to know where he goes shopping or who his parents are, or where he lives … He’s licensed to kill, and we have to believe that he can do that. If you don’t, then you’ve lost the audience.”
Craig’s final appearance as Bond came in 2021’s No Time to Die, in which he played the spy for a fifth and final time alongside Léa Seydoux, Rami Malek, Lashana Lynch, Ralph Fiennes, Ben Whishaw, and Ana de Armas. Directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga, the film ended with Bond sacrificing himself to destroy the missiles carrying deadly nanobots, bringing Craig’s 15-year run as 007 to a close.
The forthcoming film will be the first Bond film since Amazon MGM took creative control of the franchise from long-time producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G Wilson.