According to The Daily Beast, a leaked email from the Sony hacking incident revealed that Sony Pictures Entertainment co-chairman Amy Pascal suggested that British actor Idris Elba "should be the next [James] Bond."
That's an idea that Elba himself loves. When asked by a fan, "If it were offered to you, would you be the next James Bond?" Elba replied, "Yes, if it was offered to me, absolutely."
But one guy isn't in love with that idea. Last week, conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh said that "[James Bond] was white and Scottish, period. That is who James Bond is. But now Sony is suggesting that the next James Bond should be Idris Elba, a black Briton rather than a white from Scotland. But that's not who James Bond is, and I know it's racist to probably even point this out. "
"We had 50 years of white Bonds because Bond is white. Bond was never black. Ian Fleming never created a black Brit to play James Bond. The character was always white. He was always Scottish. He always drank vodka shaken not stirred and all that," Limbaugh added.
Elba tweeted his reply:
Isn't 007 supposed to handsome? Glad you think I've got a shot! Happy New year people. pic.twitter.com/3g9lAl2Uo3
— Idris Elba (@idriselba) December 27, 2014If chosen, Elba would be the first black actor to play James Bond - but he hopes that his ethnicity wouldn't be the defining feature of the character. "I just don't want to be the black James Bond," Elba told NPR, "Sean Connery wasn't the Scottish James Bond, and Daniel Craig wasn't the blue-eyed James Bond, so if I played him, I don't want to be called the black James Bond."
(Idris Elba Photo: IMDb)
I reckon Jo Brand would do...one ascerbic comment from her and all manner of nasties throw in the towel.
But then, if I were to suggest a Black Brit to play James Bond, my first pick would be Richard Ayoade (but lose the hair, keep the glasses). :)
And the personality change from Piers Brosnan to Craig was as big a change as the Doctor Who change from Matt Smith to Peter Capaldi (which has led some people to speculate that 007 is a Time Lord).
Or there's the theory considering the 50 year stretch of his adventures (so far) that "James Bond" is just the code name/alias of whoever the current operative to earn the 007 designation is. It does make a binge-watching of the movies a little less jarring.