Michael Fassbender was long-rumored to be the next James Bond, but he and Naomie Harris exclusively told Us Weekly that they’re pulling for one of their Black Bag costars to take over as 007.
“Well, I think Regé[-Jean Page] could be a frontrunner after this, to be honest,” Fassbender, 47, told Us at the New York City premiere of Black Bag on Sunday, March 9. I think he’s fantastic. He’s got all the attributes. So let’s wait and see.”
Black Bag — which hits theaters Friday, March 14 — features Fassbender and Cate Blanchett as married spies, George and Kathryn, for the National Cyber Security Centre. George must find a mole within the organization, and he hopes it isn’t his wife. The couple organize a dinner party and invite colleagues they suspect could be double agents, including George’s direct report Colonel James Stokes (Page), psychologist Dr. Zoe Vaughan (Harris) and the begrudgingly overlooked Freddie Smalls (Tom Burke). The spouses analyze their friends as the clock is ticking on finding the traitor in this thriller, directed by Stephen Soderbergh.
While Fassbender was often a favorite among oddsmakers to play Bond, Harris, 44, has a little more experience with the franchise. The former Bond girl — she played Moneypenny in Skyfall (2012), Spectre (2015) and No Time to Die (2021) — told Us that the Bridgerton alum would be the perfect 007 after Daniel Craig‘s departure.
“I think Regé would be amazing,” Harris gushed to Us on the Black Bag red carpet. “I’d love Regé to be the next James Bond. But who knows? I don’t know what’s going to happen.”
Of course, Page has heard rumors that he is in the running for a Bond role, which he first addressed in April 2021 after the first season of Bridgerton skyrocketed his star status.
“Ah, the ‘B’ word,” Page joked to The Mirror at the time. “I think that if you are British, and you do anything of note that other people take notice of, then people will start talking about that. I think that’s fairly normal and I’m flattered to be in the category of Brits that people have noticed.”
Meanwhile, Burke suggested another Brit known for historical dramas — but he went with a former Downton Abbey star. “I’ve always thought Matthew Goode, personally,” Burke told Us at Sunday’s premiere. “He has that double-edge charm, lethal thing.”
Related: Pierce Brosnan Says Aaron Taylor-Johnson Should Be the Next James Bond
James Bond alum Pierce Brosnan is endorsing one of his former costars, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, to become the next 007. Brosnan, 70, starred in four films in the iconic British secret agent franchise: Golden Eye (1995), Tomorrow Never Dies (1997), The World Is Not Enough (1999) and Die Another Day (2002). He appeared with Taylor-Johnson, 33, […]
While the actors are excited to find out who is playing Bond next, Fassbender added that he isn’t too concerned about the franchise changing hands. (Amazon MGM Studios announced that the company took “creative control of the James Bond franchise” after signing a deal with the Broccoli family, who have overseen the films since gaining the rights to author Ian Fleming‘s spy novels in the early 1960s.)
“I got bigger things to worry about. Not really, I don’t have a lot of things to worry about, but no, I don’t worry about that,” Fassbender shared with a laugh.
With reporting by Antonio Ferme
Read the full article here
