If you’ve had your heart set on Idris Elba playing the iconic role of James Bond, you might be waiting a while.
The actor recently confirmed to Vanity Fair that not only has he not been offered the role, but he’s “disheartened” by the backlash towards the possibility of a black James Bond.
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Ugh. Really, people?
The “Fast and Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw” actor recently chatted with ‘Vanity Fair’ for their cover story.
Naturally, the conversation ended up in the direction it usually goes: with talks of him becoming the next James Bond.
Personally, we think it would be a perfect fit for him to step into the secret service agent’s shoes.
Like Cinderella slipping into the right shoe.
He’s totally suave, ridiculously handsome, and did we mention he already looks great in a suit?
The rumors of him becoming the next James Bond began circulating in 2014 when emails from Sony Pictures leaked.
Amy Pascal, a senior executive at Sony, said, “Idris should be the next Bond.”
Sadly, these rumors began backlash from those who were against a black 007.
Recently, the actor got real about their racist comments.
“You just get disheartened when you get people from a generational point of view going, ‘It can’t be.’”
“And it really turns out to be the color of my skin,” he continued.
“And then if I get it and it didn’t work, or it did work, would it be because of the color of my skin?”
“That’s a difficult position to put myself into when I don’t need to.”
He also mentioned that this isn’t his first time dealing with racism.
“If you were black and living in Canning Town, you were probably subject to racial abuse and getting chased down the street by people calling you a black coon.”
So it doesn’t make things easier that there are comments like these online.
Not only are they extremely hurtful, but they perpetuate his hesitancy to taking on the role.
Despite all of the negatively, we’re so happy that he’s not *completely* counting himself out.
People’s ” Sexiest Man Alive said he would accept the role if it was offered to him.
“Of course, if someone said to me, ‘Do you want to play James Bond?,’ I’d be like, ‘Yeah!’ That’s fascinating to me.'”
Get on that, Sony Pictures!
But he also made it clear that while he would accept, he’s not *actively* going after the role.
“It’s not something I’ve expressed, like, ‘Yeah, I wanna be the black James Bond.’”
Whatever happens, happens at this point, right?
As for right now, though, rumors are amping up again.
This is due to additional rumors that Daniel Craig — the current James Bond — is retiring.
The rumors ran even *more* rampant when Elba posted this selfie with Daniel Craig at the Golden Globe Awards.
People began speculating that it was “captioned” awks since Elba would be taking Craig’s place as the famous agent …
If that were to happen, Elba is well-aware of the pressures that come with the role.
While speaking to The Daily Mail , he said, “You’re THAT character, and known as that character for many, many years.”
“I’m creating characters now that can still live alongside Idris. Not ones that take over me and solely define me.”
And he also knows that there is a ton of support out there for him too.
Don’t forget:
Hottest boss: Charles Miner.
For more Idris, you can check out the full interview at ‘Vanity Fair’.
Lastly, we simply need to know his preference:
shaken or stirred?
