While Jack Lowden remains the bookmakers’ favorite to take on the role of James Bond, the journalist who originally broke the news of Daniel Craig’s casting for 007 over twenty years ago has said another actor has been cast.
According to Showbiz411 reporter Roger Friedman, who was the first to reveal Craig had been cast for the 2006 Bond franchise revival Casino Royale, Callum Turner has been picked by Amazon MGM to play the new James Bond.
While this has not been confirmed by Amazon or any other producers of the upcoming 26th official James Bond movie, Friedman’s seniority and history of accurate insider reporting has given his comments some serious credibility.
Turner, a 36-year-old actor who grew up on a council estate in Chelsea, London, is best known for his roles in A24’s romantic comedy Eternity, Apple TV’s Masters of the Air, and Universal’s 2026 film, One Night Only.
Yesterday, news broke that Turner had stepped down as a director of the production company Twentytwo Films, which the actor co-founded along with his wife, pop superstar Dua Lipa. The move has fueled rumors that Turner’s priorities have shifted now that his time is potentially occupied by the demands of playing Britain’s best-loved action hero.
Two weeks ago, Turner was reported alongside Lowden, fellow British actor Josh O’Connor, and an unnamed fourth actor, to be undergoing screen tests for the role of Bond at Bray Studios in Berkshire, said to have occurred last weekend.
Early reports said Lowden, best known for his work on the Apple TV series Slow Horses, emerged as “clear favorite” from the auditions, where actors “had to impress with stunts, their camera presence and dialogue” — although this may not have actually turned out to be the case.
British bookmaking giant Ladbrokes gave Lowden an 8/11 lead on being cast as Bond, while Turner sits in second place, with 2/1 odds.
