M.G. Siegler • #james bond • Jan 6, 2026

Back to Basics Bond

Is Callum Turner already 007?

Yes, I'm linking to The Daily Mail. But it's (potentially) James Bond news, and there's almost certainly some smoke here, if not exactly fire yet:

The quest to find the next James Bond may be over.

Sources have told The Mail on Sunday that Callum Turner – the bookies' odds-on favourite to take over from Daniel Craig – has been telling friends the role is his.

One source close to the Fantastic Beasts star said: 'He's been blabbing all over town. Callum is the new Bond, it's been confirmed. Everyone in his circle is talking about it. It's the worst-kept secret going.'

Over the past few days, a number of other publications have cited The Mail's piece with varying degrees of matter-of-factness. But Jordan Ruimy seems to both support/augment the reporting with his own for World of Reel:

Over the weekend, I reached out to my strongest 007 source to ask about these latest rumors, and it turns out there is some truth to them — but, as usual, The Daily Mail is over-reporting what is so far not a done deal. Yes, Turner has caught the attention of Villeneuve and Amazon/MGM, and yes, he is due for a screen test in the coming weeks, but he still hasn’t nabbed the role. Not even close. My source continues to maintain that Jacob Elordi remains in the mix as another potential candidate.

The fact remains: Villeneuve is currently in post-production on “Dune: Part Three” and won’t commit to any actor until that picture is locked.

It was previously known that Villeneuve wouldn't commit to picking the next Bond until Dune 3 was wrapped. It's possible he made a move/met with Turner after filming wrapped, but they're clearly still in post-production for his massive blockbuster due out in less than a year. Steven Knight is undoubtedly busy writing Bond 26, so it's certainly possible that he's taking some meetings for Amazon – which is still a weird thing to write.

Regardless, Turner clearly has to be the favorite at this point, and while a studio obviously shouldn't make such a decision based on the actor's fiancé... well, it can't hurt to have Dua Lipa perfectly teed up for a theme song? That's just a fun added wrinkle to all of this. Aaron Taylor-Johnson also has a talented partner, but her skillset, directing, is covered here...

Interestingly, Turner and Taylor-Johnson – long the front-runner based on clearly also premature reports/rumors – are the same age at 35. (Turner is about four months older.) That is also pretty much the perfect age for James Bond per Ian Fleming's novels. And that's perhaps more important than usual here as:

Knight is rumored to be drawing heavily from Fleming’s earliest novels, which could signal an ‘origin’ Bond — revisiting his Royal Navy background, his recruitment into MI6, and his eventual attainment of ‘00’ status. The story could even be set in the ’50s or ’60s.

This is an angle that a lot of people, myself included, have long been clamoring for. The Bond-trying-to-make-his-way-in-the-modern-age trope has been well overplayed at this point. Why not take him back in time. We know Knight is good with period pieces – the Peaky Blinders movie is due in two months – Villeneuve would be a total wildcard there. His movies are all contemporary or Blade Runner 2049, or well, Dune.

Jacob Elordi is an interesting wild card here. Few actors (outside of the decidedly non-British Timothée Chalamet) have more buzz around them at the moment. But he may be a click too young for the role at just 28. Yes, he's technically Australian – but so was George Lazenby – and Elordi certainly plays English well enough. So perhaps Elordi finds himself in a Pierce Brosnan situation, where he reports back for his mission at a later time...

Anyway, I'll just note that I (almost quite literally) ran into Callum Turner on the streets of London a few weeks back after a Chelsea match (he's a diehard fan).¹ So while I liked the idea of Taylor-Johnson, I'm in favor of this, if it happens.

👇

Previously, on Spyglass...