Who will be the next James Bond? The bookies go crazy

Tom Hardy and fit bird

Tom Hardy is the current favourite but this doesn't stop suggestions from the realistic to the outlandish. However it must be clear that Daniel Craig is still the current Bond but it is looking more and more unlikely that he will play the part again.

The following comes from Sporting Bets forum, but beware there are some falsehoods regarding Fleming and the creation of Bond in the article -


The character of Bond, James Bond was created in 1953 by former MI6 alumni Ian Fleming, who employed him in twelve novels and two short story collections. The character has also been used in the longest running and most financially successful film franchise to date, starting in 1962 with Dr. No when Bond, James Bond was Sean Connery.

Sean Connery was  the best on screen Bond, so who could possibly fill his size nines?
For the record Bond was NOT English, his father was Scottish and his mother was Swiss.

So Connery (so far) had the best lineage for the role, being a Scot.
Connery despite being a former milkman and body builder could actually act, so that’s a gauntlet thrown down to Clive Owen (at 10/1) and Jude Law (at 33/1) besides anyone who has seen Repo Men will know that Law can’t fight for toffee.

Since Connery, Sean Connery on screen we’ve had an Australian, a Brit, a Welshman, an Irishman and a blond one….
So geography-wise the net is wide open. That means we can’t count out Hugh Jackman (Australian) and Goran Visnjic (Craotian -Chicago-ese) who are both at 18/1 and Aussies Guy Pearce and Russell Crowe who are both at 50/1 (between the two, Crowe would win in a fight, basically he could kill you with a phone).
Christian Bale is on short odds at 8/1 but after his “Terminator” moment, directors are less keen on working with him and he is after all BATMAN, and the law of franchise does say “Thou shalt not have the lead in two…” (That’s why Daniel (I need a job) Radcliffe is at 500/1).

Other people on the recruitment list of Universal Exports are Orlando (Please don’t mention Johnny bloody Depp) Bloom at 14/1, Julian (there will never be a Bond called Julian) McMahon at 18/1, Gerard (I will appear in ANY film) Butler at 20/1 and Eric (would actually be quite good) Bana (possibly a good money bet, as he did play a very good spy in Munich (the film not the city)) at 40/1.
Also there is Colin (quite a good actor now) Farrell at 50/1, but maybe he’s too “oirsh” (and boy-ish) and I can’t really see him asking for a Martini, shaken OR stirred.

Fassbender - also in the running

Contenders for the role from years past include Oliver Reed (too pissed), Tom Jones (too busy with the ladies), Lewis (the Professionals) Collins (not to be confused with Lewis Carroll who wrote the Alice books and who would have been a rubbish Bond) and Sam Neil (unfortunately was the Devil). So anyone can be considered.

Further beyond the realms of likelihood (where the big odds live) we have Hugh (too bumbling and camp) Grant at 100/1, Rupert (too gay) Everett at 150/1 and Mike (unknown quantity) Richardson at 2,000/1.
Wane Rooney is contractually obligated to the Shrek franchise so there are no odds available on him being Bond.
And just to round out the field, the true wild cards are Angelina (surely too female) Jolie at 500/1, Russell (surely too feminine) Brand at 600/1, Barrack (no you can’t) Obama at 1,000/1 and David Beckham isn’t REALLY in contention, no matter what you hear, he’s at 500/1.

Fleming thought that Bond should be a “gentleman thug” someone who was equally at home ordering a martini in a dinner jacket and fighting down a darkened alley (in a dinner jacket). This is why Tom Hardy is the Current favourite (plus he did himself no harm by his “audition” role in Inception) he’s at 6/1.

Cary Grant was (would you believe it) one of Flemings first choices for the role, so maybe a smart bet would be on Michael Fassbender at 18/1 who looks the part and also looks like he’d be equally at home, coldly following orders, sweeping an Uzbekistan Beauty called Sofia off her feet, sending food back in a posh restaurant or fighting a couple of Latvian thugs in the street (and winning).