Idris Elba Is 'Part of the Conversation' for Next James Bond, Producer Says: 'He's a Magnificent Actor'

Daniel Craig's final movie as James Bond was last year's No Time to Die

Idris Elba poses for a photo. Photo: Emma McIntyre/Getty

The James Bond franchise producers are aware of Idris Elba when it comes to the conversation of who will next play 007.

On Deadline's Crew Call podcast last week, producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson discussed Daniel Craig's last outing as the famous spy in last year's No Time to Die. When asked if they've considered Elba, 49, to become the next Bond, Broccoli maintained they haven't fully begun the process yet.

"Well, we know Idris, I'm friends with him and he's a magnificent actor," said Broccoli.

"You know, 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 kind of had its run and Daniel has been able to, well, we've all been able to, reap the benefits of Daniel's wonderful tenure, we're not gonna think about or talk about anybody else, actors to play the role or storylines or anything. We just wanna live in the moment, the present."

Elba's name has been bounced around as a future Bond for years now, including in 2014 when an email leaked from Sony Pictures executive Amy Pascal revealed her feeling that "Idris should be the next Bond."

Daniel Craig as James Bond. MGM / Courtesy Everett Collection

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The Suicide Squad actor has previously addressed fan rumors that he could become the first Black James Bond, saying he was disappointed by reactions from some who refused to see him as the fictional character.

"You just get disheartened when you get people from a generational point of view going, 'It can't be.' And it really turns out to be the color of my skin," Elba told Vanity Fair in 2019 in response to the backlash. "And then if I get it and it didn't work, or it did work, would it be because of the color of my skin? That's a difficult position to put myself into when I don't need to."

He added at the time, "James Bond is a hugely coveted, iconic, beloved character that takes audiences on this massive escapism journey. Of course if someone said to me, 'Do you want to play James Bond?' I'd be like, 'Yeah!' That's fascinating to me. But it's not something I've expressed, like, 'Yeah, I wanna be the Black James Bond.' Because, by the way, we're talking about a spy. If you really want to break it down, the more less-obvious it is, the better."