Though Idris Elba offered a blunt “no” last August to the question of whether he might be the next James Bond, that evidently hasn’t stopped the public from rooting for him, with the Luther star topping a recent poll that asked 3,000 Brits who they’d like to see as the next 007.
The poll conducted by Meerkat Movies saw Elba with a solid 20% of the votes, with Tom Hardy coming in second place at 17%. After that, Tom Hiddleston comes a distant third with 7%, followed by Jude Law (6%), Richard Madden (4.23%), Henry Cavill (4.13%), Damian Lewis (3.93%), James Norton (3.70%), Eddie Redmayne (3%) and John Boyega (2%).
Last August, British cinema chain ODEON ran a similar poll that saw Elba at number one with 26%, with Hardy and Hiddleston taking second and third, respectively. Needless to say, we’re seeing a clear pattern here, but while public demand is one thing, whether or not the studios agree that Elba is the best choice for the role is another matter entirely.
In fact, recent bookies’ odds have placed Hiddleston as the clear favorite for the part, followed by James Norton of Belle and McMafia fame. Meanwhile, a report from last month alleged that former Game of Thrones star Richard Madden was being eyed for the part.
In any case, it’ll probably be a long wait before we get any confirmation on who the next James Bond will be, especially when Daniel Craig has yet to finish his run in the series. True Detective and Beasts of No Nation director Cary Joji Fukunaga will be hoping to give the character’s current incarnation a fitting sendoff when Bond 25 hits theaters on February 14th, 2020, but what happens beyond that remains to be seen.