Former James Bond casting director Debbie McWilliams has given her blunt verdict on the current favourites to become the next 007, including Callum Turner and Jacob Elordi.
McWilliams' Casting Legacy
McWilliams worked on 13 of the 25 Bond films and was responsible for casting Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan, and Daniel Craig. She told The Independent that it is essential for the next Bond to remain an enigma.
'It is absolutely essential that he retains a total enigma. I don’t want to see any of them as Bond because we now know so much about them,' she said.
The Search for the Next 007
The quest to find Daniel Craig's successor is underway, with Nina Gold, known for her work on The Crown, leading the casting for the next movie directed by Denis Villeneuve. Amazon has taken creative control of the franchise, and the next round of auditions is reportedly in August.
Favourites include Callum Turner, Jacob Elordi, and Harris Dickinson. However, McWilliams believes that actors who are already too famous are unsuitable. She explained: '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. We never want to see him at home.'
Past Casting Choices
McWilliams was drawn to Dalton and Brosnan because they were 'under the radar' actors. Craig was slightly more established but still not a household name at the time. She said of the next Bond: 'That helps enormously, to see somebody who is completely out of the blue.'
She also recalled bizarre casting attempts, including Michael Jackson and Madonna. 'We went through a phase of the most ridiculous people getting in touch, like Michael Jackson. Madonna managed to creep in,' she said, adding that there was another person she couldn't reveal.
Callum Turner's Response
Callum Turner, a favourite for the role, recently addressed the speculation. 'I know as much as you do – really, I know as much as you do,' he told The Hollywood Reporter. When asked if he would take the role, he said: 'I am not going to comment on that.'
He added: 'I will tell you what’s so funny about the Bond thing: Even your best friends ask you, people text you that you haven’t spoken to for 10 years – and you know nothing! It is such a weird thing of something happening and nothing happening at all. I genuinely know nothing. I just find it quite amusing.'
