Callum, Jacob, and all the Bond talk

In these parts, per Sarah, we call the conversation about casting the new James Bond “but Dev Patel is right there”. Dev, however, does not seem to be a frontrunner in the current speculation (which is stupid) so we have to keep talking about Callum Turner and Jacob Elordi who, according to the internet at least, are the two leading contenders.

It’s worth noting that the rumours about Callum did not start in any of the trades – there’s been no proper industry reporting that Callum is being considered. As often happens in these times, the Callum is Bond narrative began on social media and then legacy media picked up on what people on social media were saying and that turned what was essentially nothing into something. Callum was in Berlin a few days ago and was asked about it. His response was to not respond.

@berlinale The cat is out of the bag. The next James Bond will be… 👀 #Berlinale2026 #callumturner #berlinale #jamesbond #whattowatch ♬ original sound - Berlinale

No comment, as we all know, only leads people to think that he *can’t* comment so, naturally, this has only reinforced the belief that he is in the running. And it fuels the assumption that some people have that Callum doesn’t mind that people think he’s in the running. Which then results in certain backlash because it suggests that he might be too thirsty for it and you know how the internet gets when a person wants something too much – they turn on them, so there’s been some anti-Callum activity online lately, amplified also by fans of Dua Lipa who don’t think he’s good enough for her. Seriously, I hate it here.

I’m really not sure why he doesn’t just lie about it. We’re almost 20 years into the Marvel rule of secrets and half-truths. Where movie rumours are concerned – who’s in them, what happens etc etc – many actors before Callum have straight up just lied when asked. And then when their lie is exposed, they shrug and move on. The internet piles on people all the time, I get it, and I get that nobody wants to invite that kind of toxicity, but in my memory, lying about not being in a franchise movie when you actually are in a franchise movie isn’t the same as lying about not participating in a sex trafficking operation or whether or not your sweat glands are operational. Nobody’s ever been cancelled for saying they’re not in a movie after they end up being in the movie. It’s not that serious, Callum, just lie about it…or…you know…don’t, if it’s part of your strategy and campaign to actually become Bond.

And then there’s Jacob Elordi, who has apparently surged to the top of the prediction lists because DeuxMoi claims to have received a tip from someone who said that: “Amazon have offered Elordi the bond role. Filming starts in October this year.”

I’ve no doubt that Jacob is on the long list of potentials for this role. What I’m unsure about is October. Most of the reporting coming from generally reliable industry outlets, like Deadline, has been that Denis Villeneuve’s Bond26 would be shooting in 2027 and released in 2028. Beginning production in October, just over six months from now, seems aggressive – not impossible, but aggressive. As of just six weeks ago, Steven Knight said he was still working on the screenplay. I don’t know how you get from still writing the screenplay to shooting in ten months. 

Also it’s not like Denis’ schedule is all that open right now. He’s in post for Dune 3, the film releases on December 18, expected to rule the upcoming holiday box office. The movie should be mostly done by October but there have been instances where a film isn’t locked until a few short weeks before it opens. Fantastic Four is a recent example. But even if the film is locked, there’s the press tour, the marketing, all the interviews…the Oscar campaign.

Dune 2 was nominated for several Oscars, there’s no way they’re not hoping for the same with Dune 3. Denis will be part of that effort, so if it’s really true that Bond is beginning in October, Denis is going to be stretched. Again, it’s not impossible, I just don’t know if it’s all that strategic, if it makes sense for the director of a tiny movie about Bond, in a new era, to be dipping out every couple of weeks because he hasn’t closed the book on his previous tiny movie that could be an Oscar contender.

To go back to Jacob and his suitability for the role – he’s Australian, not British, so it would be interesting to see how Brits react if he becomes the new Bond. Especially since the only other Aussie Bond is George Lazenby, widely regarded as the worst Bond. Barbara Broccoli is said to have once sworn there would never be another, Lazenby was so bad. But she's not in charge anymore, and these are the decisions she's given up. Also, at 6 ft 5, Elordi would be the tallest Bond on film. Not exactly inconspicuous. Which might be a problem for a spy? At least in the real world. In the movies, a very tall Bond is the male fantasy. A big objection to Daniel Craig was that he was “too short”.

More importantly though, does Jacob Elordi even want to be Bond? The persona that Jacob has adopted is that he wants to be regarded as a serious actor and it’s not that Bond isn’t a serious role, it’s just not an…Oscarly role. And Jacob is that kind of actor – like so many of them in their 20s, it’s all about the accolades. He just received his first Oscar nomination, in the supporting actor category, and he has a good shot at it. If he doesn’t win, he’ll be chasing another one. And, actually, if he does win, he’ll want a best actor nomination next time.

Anyone who is cast as the new Bond will likely be Bond for the next quarter century. It’s not that he couldn’t do projects in between but Jacob is of a generation that can’t even commit to coffee, let alone a character that any actor would have to be committed to for at least a decade and likely more; and then on top of that there’s the cultural association with said character. Presumably these are, and should be, part of his and his team’s considerations. Nobody asked me but if I had to guess, Jacob Elordi will only consider Bond if he wins the Oscar. If he doesn’t, he’s not taking the call.