Is Aaron Taylor-Johnson new James Bond? '007' bosses impressed with actor's secret audition
LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM: Daniel Craig ended his extraordinary run as James Bond with last year’s ‘No Time To Die’. Since then, the people at EON Productions have been trying hard to find the right person to play the legendary character on the big screen. From Tom Hardy and Henry Cavill to Idris Elba and Taron Edgerton, a lot of names have been floating around on social media as to who should be the next 007. However, a recent report suggests that a new name has entered the list of actors who are being considered to play the role, and it is none other than Aaron Taylor-Johnson.
Johnson’s career trajectory has been really amazing and he is one of the brightest talents working in the industry right now. He started working as an actor when he was just 10 years old and received a lot of recognition when he was cast as Dave Lizewski in the 2010 movie ‘Kick-Ass’. Since then, he has been a part of several high-end ventures such as ‘Avengers’, ‘Godzilla’, ‘Nocturnal Animals’, ‘Tenet’, and most recently, ‘Bullet Train’. But if the reports are true, then he is ready to take the biggest role of his life.
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According to The Sun, a secret audition took place in September earlier this year and actor Aaron Taylor-Johnson went for the screen test for 007 and made a good impression during the audition that took place at Pinewood Studios, where many of the franchise’s films have been shot. As per the source, he is now on the list of actors that is being considered to don the iconic tuxedo when the character returns to the big screen. “Aaron went for a screen test to be the next Bond in September and producers and Barbara loved him. He is now one of the front-runners,” The Sun reported while citing the source.
In recent months, a lot of actors have reported being roped in for playing the legendary character. Initially, it was reported that Tom Hardy is the front-runner to play the role while some reported that Henry Cavill is now being touted as the next Bond. However, the only actor who seemed to have a talk with the makers of Bond is Idris Elba, but it seems he has walked away from the talks and paved the way for a new MI6 agent.
Bond has a very long and interesting history in Hollywood. As of now, seven actors have played the iconic detective in movies and it was Sean Connery who played the role for the first time in the 1962 movie ‘Dr No’. The actor went on to star in six more Bond movies. David Niven and George Lazenby portrayed the character in one movie each while Roger Moore played James Bond in seven movies as well.
Timothy Dalton took the mantle of the iconic detective and played the character in two movies between 1987 and 1989. The franchise took a break of 6 years and returned with Pierce Brosnan as the new Bond in 1995. Brosnan became the highest-paid actor to play Bond at the time and received a salary of $16.5 million for ‘Die Another Day’ in 2004. Meanwhile, 2006 saw Daniel Craig stepping into the world of James Bond. His first movie as Bond, titled ‘Casino Royale’, turned out to be a huge hit and the actor received a lot of praise for his acting. By 2015, Craig became the highest-paid actor to play the role with a salary of a whopping $25 million.
If Aaron Taylor-Johnson is chosen to portray the detective, it will undoubtedly take his career to a whole new level. However, there are a lot of great actors on the list and he would have to beat them in order to nab the role. Let’s see who wins the race.