We’ve all expected that Daniel Craig’s next James Bond film will be his last, but now that the actor has confirmed it, it’s time to begin considering the candidates to replace him in earnest. I don’t imagine we’ll find out who will earn the 007 designation next until after next year’s No Time to Die, but one of the names that frequently comes up is Sam Heughan. The Outlander actor hasn’t gotten the James Bond call, but he thinks it’s time for another Scottish 007, as he explained:
I can reveal right now, I am not James Bond. I’m still waiting for the call. Well I haven’t been told I’m not [James Bond]. I’d be the first Scottish [since Sean Connery]. Ian Fleming, he had a lot of Scottish ties. I think it would definitely be time for another Scottish Bond, but I actually shot a movie this year based on Andy McNab’s novels. It’s a lot like Bond, a lot like Bourne.
On The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Sam Heughan confirmed that he is not the next James Bond, at least not yet. The actor has not received the call tapping him for the iconic role, but as far as we know, neither has anyone else, so the Outlander star could still be very much in the running. Sam Heughan seems to be taking an optimistic approach to the whole situation and noted that he hasn’t been told he isn’t the next James Bond, so there’s still a chance.
Sam Heughan said that he is simply waiting for that career-changing call to come. This is not the first time he's been in the running, but rather than just wait, Sam Heughan offered a few hints why he’s right for the role. The actor subtly bolstered his case to play James Bond a bit by concurring with Jimmy Fallon that he would be the first Scottish actor to play the British spy since the first big screen Bond, Oscar winner Sean Connery.
Likening yourself to the actor that many fans still consider to be the best James Bond is not a bad way to go for the Scot. Born in Balmaclellan in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, Sam Heughan thinks that its time for another Scottish actor to play Ian Fleming’s spy. As he noted, Ian Fleming himself had Scottish ties as the grandson of a Scottish financier and whose father was born in Scotland.
It’s not just his nationality that Sam Heughan is using to hint that he very much wants to receive that call from MI6. The actor also told Jimmy Fallon that he recently starred in a movie based on Andy McNab’s novels. That film is called SAS: Red Notice and stars Sam Heughan as an SAS soldier who must thwart an army of terrorists that have highjacked the Eurostar train beneath the English Channel.
SAS: Red Notice also stars Andy Serkis, Ruby Rose, Hannah John-Kamen and Tom Hopper. Although he likens it more to the Jason Bourne franchise than Bond, Sam Heughan presumably shows more of his action chops in this film, which could act as something of a proof of concept for him taking on the Bond role. If not, he still got to play a not entirely dissimilar part.
Sam Heughan also stars in Bloodshot next year. I don’t expect we’ll hear an announcement on the next Bond until after No Time To Die comes out in order to keep focus on that film, but for now, Sam Heughan could still be a possibility.
The fifth season of Outlander begins on Starz on February 16, and you can catch No Time To Die when it opens in theaters on April 10, 2020. Check out our 2020 Release Schedule to keep track of all of next year’s biggest movies.
