The search for the next James Bond may finally be coming to an end: according to reports, a very select group of actors will test to become the next British Agent 007 this weekend.
According to the Hollywood Reporter and Variety, citing multiple sources, a group of actors, including Slow Horses’ Callum Turner and Jack Lowden, will appear on camera as the secret agent this weekend in London.
The tests are supposed to include three elements: stunts, camera presence and dialogue. Reports vary that between three and five actors are finalists for the role, which was vacated by Daniel Craig after 2021’s No Time to Die. Despite speculation to the contrary, Sinners’ Jack O’Connell and Wuthering Heights star Jacob Elordi are not testing, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
Dune filmmaker Denis Villeneuve is set to direct the next installment in the Bond franchise for Amazon MGM Studios, which bought the rights to the series in an $8.45 billion (£6.9 billion) deal in 2022. Peaky Blinders writer Steven Knight will pen the script.
The company, which paid more than $1 billion last year to wrest “creative control” from the Broccoli family, has neither confirmed nor denied the reports, and referred The Hollywood Reporter to its previous statement: “The search for the next James Bond is underway. While we do not intend to comment on specific details during the casting process, we are excited to share more news with 007 fans when the time is right.”
In April of this year, Amazon film executives urged fans to be patient while waiting for the casting announcement, citing an abundance of caution in making the closely watched decision. “I know you’re all wondering when we’re going to announce who will play James Bond,” said Courtenay Valenti, the company’s head of cinema. “Don’t get too excited. Please know that we’re taking the time to do this with care and deep respect. It’s a lifelong dream for all of us to bring audiences to this next chapter, and it’s a responsibility we don’t take lightly.”
Villeneuve, a “die-hard Bond fan”, said the opportunity to add to the beloved franchise is what kept him away from the Dune franchise that consumed the better part of a decade of his life.
“I said, ‘Maybe it’s a good idea to come back to this project, not out of nostalgia, not because I miss it, but on the contrary – I’m tired of it,'” he told Empire of Dune: Messiah, which premieres in December. “I want to make sure that I’m tough on the material. That I’m not complacent,” he said. “I said to myself, ‘When this is done, I’m going to need a very powerful rocket to get away from Arrakis.’ When I was asked to do the next Bond, I said, ‘OK, this is what I need.’
It’s been over 20 years since Bond’s last full-screen test; Future Superman Henry Cavill was reportedly a runner-up, but the role ultimately went to Craig, who first appeared in 2006’s Casino Royale.
Speculation about the new Bond has intensified in the months since Villeneuve was revealed as director in 2025. The film is still reportedly positioned for a 2028 release.
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