New James Bond Actor? Tom Hardy & Aaron Taylor-Johnson Out of the Running!

Celebrated British actor Aaron Pierre has been added to the list of potential candidates to play James Bond in the upcoming 26th film of the series. While speculation about the next 007 has been a constant buzz in recent years, it has only intensified since Amazon took creative control of the franchise in February.

Amazon has made it clear that their plan is to reboot the series starting with a feature film, but the specifics of their approach, including what type of actors they are looking for the lead role, remain unclear at this point. The new film is being produced by David Heyman and Amy Pascal, but the director and production start date are still to be announced.

After several months of uncertainty about casting, the news site DanielRPK now claims that Aaron Pierre is being considered for the role. Pierre first gained attention for his role as Dev-Em in the series Krypton, before moving on to more prominent roles in Barry Jenkins’ historical series The Underground Railroad, and then in M. Night Shyamalan’s supernatural thriller Old in 2021.

As noted by Dark Horizons, it was last year that he really broke out with Rebel Ridge, the critically acclaimed action drama by Jeremy Saulnier that premiered on Netflix, where he starred alongside Don Johnson, and also became the original voice of Mufasa in Disney’s Mufasa: The Lion King.

Today, the 31-year-old actor is set to play a major role in the fourth season of The Morning Show on Apple TV+ and is currently filming in the upcoming series by Damon Lindelof for HBO, Lanterns, where he also leads as John Stewart, the Green Lantern, opposite Kyle Chandler. Additionally, he is busy with the drama Love Of Your Life alongside Margaret Qualley and Patrick Schwarzenegger, which does not yet have a release date.

For now, initial reactions to his potential casting as the legendary spy seem quite positive on social media. It remains to be seen if he will be the chosen one…

What About the Director?

Rumors suggest that five directors are contenders to helm the project: from Denis Villeneuve (Dune, Blade Runner 2049) and Edward Berger (All Quiet on the Western Front, Oscar-nominated), to Edgar Wright (Hot Fuzz, Baby Driver), Jonathan Nolan (screenwriter of The Dark Knight, showrunner of Westworld), and Paul King (Paddington, Wonka). Alfonso Cuarón, previously considered, has withdrawn from the selection. The director of James Bond 26 is yet to be determined.

In the meantime, to get a glimpse of the actor being considered for the lead role, head over to Netflix to watch or rewatch the excellent Rebel Ridge.