Riz Ahmed Lays Out His Case To Be Considered As The Next James Bond
While recent rumours have suggested that James Bond producers have settled on either Jacob Elordi, Callum Turner or Aaron Taylor-Johnson as their next 007; Riz Ahmed is making it clear he’s not giving up hope either.
In his new TV series Bait, Riz plays a fictional actor who has been heavily rumoured to become the first person of colour cast as the lead in a Bond movie.
During an appearance on Wednesday’s edition of The Tonight Show, the British actor publicly stated his case to be considered for the part.
“Traditionally, actors playing James Bond have not looked like me, right?” he began, before joking: “Traditionally, actors playing James Bond have always been five foot nine or over. But, the rumours aren’t true, I’m five foot eight-and-a-half, not five foot eight.
“And in what world do you want a secret agent to blend in with the New York Knicks? You need someone who’s just below the eye line, who really kind of blends in.”
He then claimed that “ever since I was a kid” people have been telling him he should play Bond, before jokingly sharing a childhood photo to prove his point.
“It’s all in the eyes, Jimmy,” he quipped. “And guess how old I was in that photo? 007! Crazy! The way it just works. It’s happening.”
“For anyone who’s still not convinced, I have one thing to say,” he concluded. “Why not? Honestly, why not? This is what I love about America, Jimmy. This is the land of ‘why not?’.”
Riz recently shared his own personal history with the James Bond franchise during an interview with Vulture.
“My dad was into [James Bond], so [the first film I saw] was probably a Sean Connery one, but I couldn’t tell you exactly,” he said. “It’s a young, young memory, you know?
“The first Bond film that I was obsessed with, because of the video game, was GoldenEye. I’m that generation of just hammering GoldenEye, and that just introduced Bond to a whole new generation. That big jump off the dam, the bungee jump – all of that. So that was one that was incredible, and I carried on playing that game for years. It’s a banger.”
Take a more in-depth look at all the latest James Bond casting rumours here.