Bond could cast its first couple as Saoirse Ronan eyes up 'young female villain' role and husband Jack Lowden remains one of the 007 frontrunners
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By ALISON BOSHOFF, EDITOR AT LARGE
Published: | Updated:
Is the 'twist' in the James Bond casting which producer Amy Pascal is promising us the fact that Bond and his nemesis will be played by a real-life husband and wife?
Slow Horses star Jack Lowden is in the running for 007.
And his wife Saoirse Ronan has just told Empire magazine that her dream is to be a Bond villain. 'I want to go dark,' she said. 'I said that I wanted to be a Bond villain, and I'm dead serious.
'I think it would be really interesting, having a young female villain. Especially for girls and women, to see someone who can just take all that pent-up anger and direct it somewhere.'
Amazon MGM Studios struck a deal with longtime franchise stewards Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson to take full control of Ian Fleming's iconic spy in 2025, and are casting at the moment, with an announcement expected this autumn.
Filming could then start at the turn of the year.
Is the 'twist' in the Bond casting which producer Amy Pascal is promising us the fact that Bond and his nemesis will be played by real-life husband and wife Saoirse Ronan and Jack Lowden?
Producer Pascal said: 'I would say the end of the year is a good bet. We are being really, really methodical.'
She added: 'Daniel Craig is a hard act to follow. And it's got to be something really different that is stirring and exciting.'
A mister and missus double act would certainly qualify. Other names in the running for Bond are thought to include Callum Turner, Jacob Elordi and Tom Holland.
Ronan has previously backed her husband for the 007 role.
When she co-hosted a 2024 BBC Radio 2 show with Scottish DJ Edith Bowman, Bowman brought up her belief that Lowden would be a great choice for the iconic role, adding that she had been making a similar argument for years.
In response, Ronan said: ‘I’m going to start counting how many times you plug him for Bond on the radio.’
When Bowman replied she had been doing so for six years, Ronan responded: ‘Hasn’t happened yet though,’ before adding: ‘There’s time, there’s time’.
But another new name has entered the fight for 007 this week.
Brit actor Jack Barton, 31, has been introduced as a potential new leading man, as he was named the current favourite for the iconic part (pictured in SAS: Rogue Heroes)
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Would casting a real-life couple as Bond and his villain add excitement or ruin the mystique of 007?
Brit actor Jack Barton, 31, has been introduced as a potential new leading man, as he was named the current favourite for the iconic part.
It has been reported by Page Six that screen tests are due to begin in the next few days, with Barton's name apparently among the shortlist.
So far he has notably appeared in teen Netflix drama Heartstopper and the BBC SAS: Rogue Heroes in 2025, as well as a selection of minor roles.
Casting directors are said to be backing Barton for the role, while it is thought that Amazon is keen for a more well-established actor.
Debbie McWilliams, who picked previous Bonds Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan and Daniel Craig for the role, previously said a newcomer should be cast.
She told the Independent in June: 'I don't want to see any of [the rumoured stars] as Bond because we now know so much about them.
'We want to know as little about them personally as possible, because that's what spies are. We don't need to know where he goes shopping or who his parents are, or where he lives.
'We never want to see him at home. And a vital element of the whole thing is his job description. He's licensed to kill, and we have to believe that he can do that. If you don't, then you've lost the audience.'
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