After years of rumors and speculations, the executive producer of the 007 franchise has confirmed that they are, in fact, considering Idris Elba to take over the iconic role of James Bond.

Accoding to The Daily Mail, Barbara Broccoli addressed the rumors during a recent podcast interview about the release of the most recent Bond film, No Time To Die.

“Well, we know Idris, we’re friends with him, and he’s a magnificent actor,” Broccoli said. “It’s been part of the conversation, but it’s always difficult to have the conversation when you have someone in the seat. I think we have decided that until No Time To Die has had its run and Daniel has been able to – well, we’ve been able to savor, reap the benefits of Daniel’s wonderful tenure, we’re not going to think about or talk about anybody else.”

Actor Daniel Craig has played Bond since the franchise was rebooted with 2008’s Casino Royale. His most recent turn marked his exit from the series after five films.

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Broccoli, who’s father Albert Broccoli co-founded EON Productions and produced several early Bond films, also lightly touched on some fans’ objections to the idea. of a Black actor portraying the role.

“We want the actor to be British,” she added. “[That’s] the key thing. And British, as we know, can be many, many things.”

Late last year, a source reportedly told The Sun that Elba had been approached by EON Productions to appear in the next film, but not as Bond.

“He won’t be the title character,” the source explained, “but they do recognize the amount of pull and respect he commands, and they want to work with him on a completely original character for the next instalment. It is still very early days for the conversations but, so far, it looks like it would be the role of a villain.”

Just a few weeks earlier, Elba had ruled himself out of the conversation during a red carpet interview with ITV London at the London Film Festival, Rolling Stone reports.

In April, the actor skirted around the rumors while promoting a new single with his artist Wavy Boy Smith on Capital Xtra.

“I know the rumors about Bond have always chased me,” he said. “Listen, my poor mum is like ‘One day you’re going to get it!’ I was like ‘Mum, I’m good, I’ve got Luther!’ I’m definitely doing that.”

Source: Idris Elba Is On The Short List To Be The Next James Bond, Executive Producer Confirms