It is pretty obvious that playing the role of James Bond is very taxing on any actor. Not only is there a lot of shooting and action involved, but there is a certain title that any actor who has played Bond has to carry on a 24/7 basis. It would appear that the current James Bond, Daniel Craig, is considering leaving his 007 marks behind after SPECTRE, which means the iconic role could be taken by another actor once again.
In a recent interview, Daniel Craig was asked if he was intending to play James Bond for a fifth movie. According to Yahoo Movies, his answer was pretty candid with: "Now? I'd rather break this glass and slash my wrists... I'm over it at the moment. We're done. All I want to do is move on." When then asked if he was leaving the James Bond franchise for good, his response was "I haven't given it any thought" and "for at least a year or two".
While it is possible that Craig could be back to play Bond again, there have been a lot of thoughts about who the next James Bond will be. According to the Independent, the list includes rumors of Damian Lewis, Idris Elba, Tom Hardy, Jason Statham, Henry Cavill, Tom Hiddleston, Michael Fassbender, Colin Firth, and even Hugh Grant. So who should be Bond?
Generally, the actor playing Bond usually has some past experience playing Bond-like characters, like Roger Moore when he played on The Saint and Pierce Brosnan when he was on Remington Steele. Damian Lewis certainly fits that role with his role on Homeland.
Idris Elba, best known for his work as Heimdall in the Thor movie franchise and Stringer Bell from The Wire, is British, and his role as DCI John Luther on the show Luther has allowed him to act in some action, but Elba has said that "I just don't want to be the black James Bond". Many certainly like him for the role and don't care about the race, even though past Bonds have been white.
As for Tom Hardy, he certain proved himself in action star in Mad Max: Fury Road. However, the Bond role is one demanding one, and this actor is sure to receive a call to play Max again after last summer's runaway hit. He probably can't be both Max and James.
Jason Statham is also an action star thanks to the Transporter series, the Expendables series, and now the new Furious series. He is known for doing all his own stunts and has enthusiastically told the Guardian that he would love to be James Bond.
Henry Cavill is best known for being a Man of Steel rather than a Man of Action. However, he just finished playing a spy in Man from U.N.C.L.E. He was actually considered for Bond back in 2005 with Casino Royale, but he was considered by the director to be too young for the part. How about now? Well, if this summer's Batman v. Superman is a hit, Henry might be booked solid for the next ten years as DC tries to jumpstart a Cinematic Universe as big as Marvel.
Tom Hiddleston also has a good gig in a comic-book related Thor franchise as the villain Loki. Loki isn't really a man of action like Bond, but many like Hiddleston for his looks and charm, which is a requirement of any James Bond.
