Actor Taron Egerton has already ruled himself out of being the next James Bond, and he’s now explained more about his thought process about not pursuing the role. Egerton told The Telegraph (via The Hollywood Reporter), “I don’t think I’m the right choice for it,” due in part to the demand on the actor to be physically fit for a long time.
“You have to be consistently statuesque to be that guy. And that’s something that I am still striving for. I’ve always struggled with my weight,” he said.
Egerton said when is considering offers for a new role, he factors in how much gym time would be required and makes his decision based in part on that. Playing James Bond is more than just playing the character, it’s like “being a brand ambassador as well as being an actor,” he said.
“That could be really fun in microcosm, but I’m sure I read that [James Bond series producer Barbara Broccoli] said that it’s a 15-year commitment,” he said. “It’s sort of irrelevant how I feel about it, anyway, because I can tell you there have been zero phone calls.”
Before this, Egerton said the James Bond movie producers have “never enquired” about him as a potential candidate for the role. “I’ve just never been one of the guys that they’re looking at. I just don’t think I’m the right person for that. I think there’s much, much, much better candidates for that role than me,” he said.
Regarding Egerton’s comment about the lengthy commitment that comes with playing James Bond, he is seemingly referring to Broccoli’s comment about how this requirement would turn some people away from the role.
“When we cast Bond, it’s a 10-, 12-year commitment. So he’s probably thinking, ‘Do I really want that thing?’ Not everybody wants to do that. It was hard enough getting [Daniel Craig to do it],” Broccoli said.
Egerton is known for his roles in the Kingsman series and for portraying Elton John in the film Rocketman. One of Egerton’s next roles is the video game entrepreneur Henk Rogers in the movie Tetris.
Egerton is the latest actor to take himself out of the running for the role of James Bond. Before this, Idris Elba said he would not play the character. “I’m not going to be that guy,” Elba said.
Broccoli has said the next James Bond movie will be a “reinvention” of the character, and it could take some time to find the right person. “It’s about a reinvention, and, ‘Where are we taking it? What do we want to do with the character?'” she said. “And then, once we figure that out, who’s the right person for that particular reinvention?”
The latest James Bond movie was 2021’s No Time to Die, which made $774.2 million during the midst of the pandemic. It was the fifth and final James Bond movie to feature Daniel Craig in the lead role.
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