Aaron Taylor-Johnson is keeping a level head surrounding rumours that he’s the next James Bond. The actor is still only 32, but he’s been well-known since he’s breakthrough role in 2008’s teen movie Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging. He played unconventional superhero Kick-Ass in 2010, and has recently taken on action movie roles in Tenet, The King’s Man, and Bullet Train. He will next be seen in Sony’s Spider-Man movie Kraven the Hunter.
Speaking to Vanity Fair for their famous annual Hollywood Cover issue, Taylor-Johnson said; “Bullet Train had a really positive response. Certain things have a nice energy around them. From that comes interesting conversations. You’re hot for a quick second and then it goes again.”
When specifically asked about the James Bond rumours, he responded extremely vaguely; “It’s flattering. You can have something really positive [written about you], but you can also have something really negative that can circulate. You just want to stay in your lane, stay grounded, stay around the people that you love and love you back, and stay in that world. Because the moment you start believing the shit people say about you, you’ve lost your fucking mind. You’ve lost it.”
Taylor-Johnson seems very aware that any hype can be fleeting; “I’ve seen, especially from Nocturnal Animals, you pick up an award or something, and then the next day it doesn’t really amount to anything.”
Whether or not Taylor-Johnson is our new Bond remains to be seen. The amount of actors who have been rumoured over the years is vast, and some have been linked to the role for so long, they’ve completely aged out of it – such as Idris Elba. It seems as thought the Broccolis want to take their time with the decision, so we’ll have to wait and see.
While we wait, check out our guide to the best spy movies.