No actor has been announced as the next James Bond. Amazon MGM Studios started auditions in the spring of 2026 for the 26th Bond film, which Denis Villeneuve will direct from a script by Steven Knight, and as of a September 11, 2026 report in Variety the part was still open.
Where the 26th Bond film stands
- Studio: Amazon MGM Studios, which in March 2025 closed a joint venture with Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson giving it creative control of the Bond rights
- Director: Denis Villeneuve
- Writer: Steven Knight, the creator of Peaky Blinders
- Producers: Amy Pascal and David Heyman, with Tanya Lapointe as executive producer
- Casting director: Nina Gold, according to Variety in May 2026
- Script: Knight said in September 2026 that the first draft is done
Amazon announced Knight as writer in July 2025, naming Villeneuve, Pascal and Heyman in the same statement. In May 2026 Variety reported that auditions had started, and Amazon said only that “the search for the next James Bond is underway” and that it did not plan to comment on details during casting.
The names in the conversation
Nobody has been named, so every name here is reported speculation, not a shortlist. Variety’s May 2026 story said Jacob Elordi, Callum Turner and Aaron Taylor-Johnson had all been rumored. Variety has since quoted Louis Partridge saying it is “wonderful” to be in contention, and Idris Elba saying the rumors about him were “never legit.”
Whoever it is will be the seventh actor to play Bond in the film series, after Sean Connery, George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan and Daniel Craig.
Betting on the next Bond
No price is quoted here. Next-Bond markets are novelty props, and as of September 25, 2026, we have no market for one that we can source and date.
If you find one, read each price as a chance: +200 is 33.3%, +600 is 14.3% and +1200 is 7.7%. The casting is decided by a studio, not a contest, and a report can move the board overnight. A novelty bet is worth making only when you rate the chance higher than the price does, and it is a bet on a decision that may already have been made.
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