Originally appeared on E! Online
The name is Powell, Glen Powell — so don’t call him James Bond.
Amid buzz for the next person to be cast as Agent 007 after Daniel Craig officially turned in his badge, the “Anyone But You” star shared why he doesn’t believe he’s the right fit for the job.
“I’m a Texan,” Powell told The Hollywood Reporter in an article published Aug. 20. “My family and I joke around, I can play Jimmy Bond, but I should not be playing James Bond. Get an authentic Brit for that job. That’s who belongs in that tuxedo.”
Indeed, Powell is the only American name that has earned its fair share of buzz surrounding the casting choice — which has yet to be announced. Other top fan-picked actors including Theo James, Henry Cavill and Aaron Taylor-Johnson, who all hail from across the pond.
James, however, similarly echoed Powell when asked about taking on the iconic role.
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“Everyone’s interested in that because it’s a big part of British cultural identity, but that probably wouldn’t be me,” James told The Guardian last March. “I do think there are better people for that job. And, honestly, it would be terrifying: if you do that, there’s no going back. You’re opening Pandora’s box there.”
Cavill, for his part, demurred on the prospect, saying he has “no information” on casting for the part, adding on “The Rich Eisen Show” in April 2024, “Maybe I’m too old now, maybe I’m not, we’ll see.”
And when rumors circulated last March that Taylor-Johnson was offered the much-coveted role, a source with knowledge told E! News at the time that he has not yet reached an official agreement from Amazon’s MGM Studios, who is backing the upcoming film.
As for how Taylor-Johnson feels about the prospect?
“It’s not really for me to say anything,” he told Esquire in August 2023. “I just focus on the things I can have my hands in right now. What’s in front of me right now.”
Even so, the “Angus Thongs and Perfect Snogging” alum did get the stamp of approval from Pierce Brosnan, who played the special agent in four separate films from 1995 to 2002.
“I think he would be very good,” Brosnan told Yahoo! Entertainment in April. “I think if he wished it, wanted it and got it, he would be great.”
Glen Powell dishes on his new Netflix movie “Hit Man,” including the real-life story behind the film, and how playing numerous roles was a dream come true for him as an actor.
