Just last month, Bond fans said goodbye to Daniel Craig’s 007 in the No Time To Die ending, after a prolonged wait for the movie’s release. Since we learned that James Bond would see its first passing of the torch in over 15 years, audiences have been putting together some potential candidates for who could embody the martini-sipping Brit next. One of the favorites to take over the mantle has long been Richard Madden, who stars in this weekend’s Eternals. So, obviously, he was asked about the potential role once more.
Richard Madden gave the kind of answer that has the right stuff to be immortalized through reaction gifs for years to come. While the Game of Thrones actor was promoting his Marvel debut, he was asked if he would like to play James Bond in the future. Check out what happened, which was posted to Twitter:
75k??? chi l'ha usato di famoso? btw fateci i meme pic.twitter.com/P58m0712jIOctober 28, 2021
A member of Richard Madden’s team can be heard saying ‘we’re going to move on from that’ just moments after the question being asked. Madden swiftly walked away from the unseen person. Hey, sometimes silence is louder than words. Madden most certainly has been asked about this many times before and he’s under no obligation to answer questions about it again.
It was just in 2019 that the actor was probed about the possibility of playing Bond. At the time, he called the idea “flattering” but “just talk,” claiming there would be another actor in the ring next week. Richard Madden is certainly among a long list of candidates who have caught the eye of fans, including Idris Elba, Tom Hardy, Henry Cavill, Regé-Jean Page, and Sam Heughan.
It’s a funny moment to watch go down, but also a reminder that recycling the same question over and over on actors who don’t have a say in the roles they’re being fan cast in can also be exhausting. Richard Madden remained respectful as he simply walked away from the question. The way in which this went down has me believing that he half expected it to come up as he walked the Eternals red carpet.
Who the next James Bond will be is constantly being bet on by the US-Bookies, most recently with The Umbrella Academy's Tom Hopper on top, with Richard Madden in second place, and Tom Hardy in the third spot. These bets may have little to do with what will actually happen when the 007 producers, Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson decide to cast the next actor for the role. Most recently, Wilson said this:
We’re not looking at anything at this point. Just getting this picture open and celebrating Daniel’s 15 years as Bond. We’re not thinking about the future, the future will come. Next year’s our 60th anniversary, and I think we’ll take a look at concentrating on that.
When Pierce Brosnan hung up the role with Die Another Day, it took three years before Daniel Craig was chosen to begin a new Bond era with 2006’s Casino Royale. It could be years folks! Perhaps with the internet so eagerly awaiting the answer, they’ll decide sooner rather than later, so the big actors in the running can finally stop finding new ways to answer the Bond question. Until then you can see Richard Madden in Eternals, in theaters on November 5.
