Is it a day ending in “Y,” because if so, there’s probably a new shift in the betting odds for who will become the next James Bond. Just when you thought it was safe to put money on either recurring frontrunner Tom Hardy or recent favorite Harry Styles, yet another contender has shown themselves to be a quickly rising prospect. Get your betting slips ready, as betting on Daniel Craig’s replacement just took a weird turn thanks to the odds being slashed on Cillian Murphy’s prospects to become the next 007.
Cillian Murphy is certainly no stranger to the James Bond succession game, as we’ve consistently seen his candidacy placed at a 10/1 odds standing. However, an update from betting firm Boyle Sports, reported via Express Online, has seen the Peaky Blinders star's chances increased by half. Murphy’s current odds of becoming the next James Bond are now sitting at a 5/1 standing. The representative who delivered this news to the publication stated that these are the lowest odds they’ve ever been at.
Even with this odds update, Cillian Murphy’s fortunes still haven’t overtaken Tom Hardy’s rather impressive odds. With a 2/1 standing recently reported for the Venom star, both the improvement of Hardy’s numbers, and the fact that he took the top spot from previous 2/1 favorite James Norton, still makes his the Cinderella story of 2020’s 007 horserace. But even with all of this discussion, there’s an important fact to keep in mind: we’re more than likely still a while off from any definitive casting.
As No Time To Die has been pushed back yet again into a spring 2021 release window, and franchise producer Barbara Broccoli has stated before that the release of the 25th James Bond film would have to occur before casting even begins, this new update is far from a golden bullet in Cillian Murphy’s favor. Still, the more choices there are for the role of James Bond, the more chances audiences will have to voice their feelings over this potential scenario. Which means when the time to actually cast the next James Bond comes, the powers that be will have all the free market research they need to choose the best candidate who meets the demands of fans and producers.
It’s time for you, the fans, to let us know what you think about the current favorites for the role of 007 in our audience poll included below. In the meantime, No Time To Die is currently set for a debut on April 2, 2021. Should this happen to change because of one circumstance or another, you can count on CinemaBlend to report on such updates, martini firmly in hand. And as always, James Bond will return.
