The James Bond franchise is about to get shaken up, not stirred. 

Amazon recently announced that the search for the newest 007 is officially underway. The mega corporation’s movie studio bought the Bond IP in 2025 after striking a deal with producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson. Since then, news on the future of the British Secret Service agent has been scant, until Amazon’s announcement that the search to replace Daniel Craig, the sixth actor to front the franchise, have begun. 

What exactly is the team behind the next Bond, which includes director Denis Villeneuve and writer Steven Knight, film looking for? Per Variety, sources close to the studio have indicated that the next debonair spy will be a British actor under 30. (Per the source, even those criteria are slightly negotiable.) 

Such a young Bond is unlike past candidates. Craig took over the franchise when he was 38 years old, with 2006’s Casino Royale, while Pierce Brosnan first picked up the gun at 42 in 1995’s GoldenEye. 

With Craig’s tenure as Bond lasting 16 years and spanning five films, he has the longest tenure of any Bond. Since his final outing in 2021, speculation about who might pick up the martini-soaked mantle has circled around several actors, most notably the 53-year-old Idris Elba. However, given the studio’s direction, that seems less likely.  

“It’s probably not right for Idris and the talk is that they want to take Bond younger,” a source told the UK’s The Times. 

If they are looking for a British actor under 30, that certainly narrows the list quite a bit. Here, we dissect the names that have been floated and evaluate how each might hold up as the next titular spy, who must be just the right mix of handsome, debonair, intelligent and quietly lethal. 

Callum Turner

Though Turner is north of 30 years old — he’s 36 — his name consistently bubbles up in the Bond discourse. The Fantastic Beasts star certainly has the looks part down, having appeared in several romance-driven films, including recent Eternity and One Night Only, a romcom set to come out in August. Despite the age issue, he’s also leading the current James Bond odds on sports betting site Kalshi. 

But another thing on Turner’s side is the lack of name recognition. While he’s not an unknown, he also isn’t a household name, a sort of rising star with a solid IMDB list, just like Daniel Craig was when he was chosen to pick up the Bond mantle 20 years ago. 

James Bond Rating: 3 out 5 martinis 

Harris Dickinson 

There doesn’t seem to be a single person Dicksinon can’t romance. In Babygirl, he played the seductive young dom to Nicole Kidman’s cougar CEO sub and he charmed the pants off Amelia Dimoldenberg on his episode of Chicken Shop Date. 

His star is also rising in a way that would allow Amazon to get in on his rising stock early. Though he’s already been in a string of successful small dramas, including The Iron Claw and Triangle of Sadness, Dickinson will next be seen as John Lennon in Sam Mendes’s four-part film The Beatles. 

James Bond rating: 5 out of 5 martinis 

Aaron Taylor-Johnson

Taylor-Johnson, known for a recent string of high-profile hits like Nosferatu and 28 Years Later, has been the Bondstakes frontrunner for some time now. A thread in the James Bond subreddit has even attributed his current career windfall to the speculation surrounding his casting. People love to bet big on a winning horse.  

But that’s the thing about being a frontrunner. As other, younger names have emerged, the 35-year-old’s chances have dwindled on markets such as Kalshi. And, as opposed to names like Dicksnson or Turner, Taylor-Johnson seems much more high profile of a choice. 

James Bond Rating: 4 out of 5 martinis 

Jacob Elordi

We know what you’re thinking: Elordi is not a Brit. But, it turns out that’s not a problem for the 28-year-old Oscar nominee. In Variety’s reporting on the matter, the outlet pointed out that his Aussie background “would not be a dealbreaker” for Amazon. Given just how hot-under-the-collar Elordi seems to make his female fans — just look at the success of Wuthering Heights — it seems hard not to imagine the 6’5” actor as 007. 

Elordi’s career is also clearly on the upswing, Euphoria season 3 notwithstanding. He has an Oscar nomination under his belt, lending heft and gravitas to his name. Maybe the only tick against him is that he’s undertested as an action hero, but that hasn’t stopped his chances, apparently. He’s currently second, behind only Turner, on Kalshi. 

James Bond Rating: 4 out of 5 martinis 

Jonathan Bailey 

Though, at 38 years old, Bailey is certainly outside of Amazon’s target age range, that hasn’t deterred internet chatter linking him with Bond. Even him posting a martini has spurred headlines. Bailey is also something of a four-quadrant draw, having starred in the Wicked films and already carrying a high-profile franchise — the Jurassic World sequels — on his back. And let’s not forget he’s the Sexiest Man Alive, for what that’s worth. 

Bond fans are notoriously picky about who puts on Bond’s loafers; need we forget, the fact that Daniel Craig would be the first Blond Bond was an international scandal when he was first announced.  That said, despite Bailey having lots of leading man experience as a heterosexual lead, there’s no doubt that a Bailey-led Bond would suffer a lot of backlash because he is gay. While his sexuality shouldn’t matter, it would likely start an uproar, even if it is from the loudest and wrongest corners of the internet. 

James Bond Rating: 3 out of 5 martinis 

Damson Idris

Whereas Idris Elba was on the internet’s wishlist to be the first Black Bond for many years, Damson Idris has recently emerged as a contender to take the role. The Snowfall and F1 star is a critically-lauded British actor and, despite being over 30, he’s still younger than some of the names on the list. 

Idris has played coy when addressing rumors about his potential casting before, saying it’s “a testament to a young artist to be given that compliment.” And Idris is just the kind of emerging star that Amazon might want to give the role. He’s currently filming the adaption of the hit novel Children of Blood and Bone, due out in 2027, leaving his schedule wide open to take on something new. 

James Bond Rating: 4 out 5 martinis 

Tom Holland 

Another high-profile guy who’s been mum when it comes to Bond rumors has been none other than Spider-Man himself, Tom Holland. “Listen, there’s speculation at the minute” Holland told Rolling Stone in 2025. “Every young British actor, it’s the pinnacle of working in our industry,” Holland continued. “I already consider myself to be the luckiest kid alive, you know? I could never have dreamed to have the career that I’ve had.”

Of course, when it comes to getting a part like James Bond, you can’t want it too much, at least publicly. But in terms of casting a James Bond, would it be possible to look at Holland and NOT see your friendly neighborhood web crawler? Execs may want a face that has less baggage; but we’re all for getting Zendaya to be a Bond Girl. 

James Bond Rating: 2 out of 5 martinis 

Henry Cavill 

Let’s make this one short and sweet: the Man of Steel has already self-elected to exit the race gracefully, citing his age—he’s 43. 

James Bond Rating: 1 out of 5 martinis 

Henry Ashton

Though much less known than some others on the list, at one point, Henry Ashton held 16% of the vote when it comes to who would next embody Bond, per Kalshi. The British actor has already proven himself a romantic lead, with a role in My Lady Jane. But, given his rather short filmography, is he too much of a newbie to calm execs about the future of this beloved franchise? 

Of course, an unknown who aces his audition could be exactly what the team behind the film are looking for; and Ashton has already enjoyed a positive reception after his name was floated online. Perhaps Bond will continue to be blonde? 

James Bond Rating: 2 out of 5 martinis  

Regé-Jean Page 

It’s no secret that Page, a Bridgerton heartthrob, has been the subject of intense Bond speculation for some time. In fact, the actor went so far as to call the level of fancasting “not normal.” 

“How I navigate it is very much about what is useful, what serves me in my job, in being able to deliver what I need to deliver to an audience, and a lot of that is just grounding,” he told Esquire UK. 

Despite being widely beloved, Page, too, might be a bit too old to don the 007 moniker. At 38, there are a few names on this list that are surely more tempting for producers. 

James Bond Rating: 3 out of 5 martinis