The star of ‘The Wire’ and ‘Luther’, Idris Elba, who had expressed his desire to take on the role of 007 —something that he was extremely excited about— ended up giving up the role.
The British actor spoke on the podcast of SmartLess about the continuous speculation that linked him to the character and revealed the fatigue that the comments that spoke of the choice of him for the iconic character created by Ian Fleming was due solely to a racial issue.
“That is to say, that they chose him —in pursuit of political correctness and inclusion—for being black and not for being a good actor,” they wrote in the Clarín newspaper.
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“I was very flattered for a long time about this. We’re all actors and we understand that the role is one of those coveted (roles)… Being asked to be James Bond (would) be like, ‘Okay, you’ve reached the top.’ That’s one of those things where everyone has a vote,” Elba said, The Guardian reported.
“It was a great compliment that all corners of the world, except for some corners, which we will not talk about, were really happy with the idea that I could be considered. Those who were not happy with the idea made the whole thing disgusting and disgusting, because it became a question of race. And it became silly and I got the worst of it.”
Idris Elba, 52, has been in the shortlist to play Bond since the early 2010s, particularly after Daniel Craig’s lack of enthusiasm to continue as 007 became apparent.
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In addition, they recalled that in 2014 the American radio host Rush Limbaugh said: “(They are) suggesting that the next James Bond should be Idris Elba, a black Briton, instead of a white man from Scotland. But that’s not what James Bond is and I know it’s probably racist to point this out.”
A year later, Roger Moore was denying being racist after the media reported comments that he allegedly said Bond should be “English-English”, while Yaphet Kotto, who played mr big in the 1973 Bond film Live and Let Die, he said: “Black men should stop trying to play roles created by white men. These roles are not written for black men.”
In the same year, author Anthony Horowitz apologized after saying that Elba was “too street” to play Bond.
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With Daniel Craig definitely retired from playing Bond after no time to diethe producers of the series are discussing who should take over.
Comments from producer Barbara Broccoli add to the feeling that Elba isn’t likely to appear in the role. Last year, she said: “When we cast Bond, it’s a 10 or 12 year commitment… A lot of people think, ‘Oh yeah, it would be fun to do one.’ Well, that’s not going to work. Elba, at 50 years old, would have to commit to making action movies until he was 60 years old.
Meanwhile, some of the strong-sounding candidates for the role include Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Henry Cavill, James Norton, Paapa Essiedu, Tom Hardy, and Rege-Jean Page.
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Meanwhile, the British writer Kim Sherwood, the first woman to be commissioned to make a new trilogy about agent 007, believes that “James Bond can evolve and adapt to changing times, even though he is an iconic and popular character that everyone knows”.
The author intends to give the character a significant twist and according to these times.
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