LONDON — The search for the next James Bond has acquired an endorsement from inside the family. Pierce Brosnan, who played 007 in four films between 1995 and 2002, has singled out Callum Turner — the bookmakers’ favourite for the role — in a Vanity Fair interview published on Tuesday, calling his former co-star “so strong” and saying he is “eagerly” awaiting the announcement like everyone else.
“All the men who are on the list now are actors I admire,” Brosnan said. “Callum, Callum Turner is someone I’ve worked with, and he’s so strong. They all have a voice and a physique, and a presence on film. They all have longevity as actors, all of these young men.” Brosnan was careful to claim no inside knowledge: “Oh, I’m just an audience member now. I’m just the man in the street who is eager to see who is going to play this epic role of cinematic history. Whoever plays the role, I wish him the very best of life and strength and courage.”
Why Turner
The endorsement carries a working history. Turner, 36, played Brosnan’s on-screen son in the 2017 film The Only Living Boy in New York. He is reported to be among the finalists on the list published by The Hollywood Reporter in October, alongside Slow Horses star Jack Lowden, also 36; further reporting by TheWrap has the final screen-test group at four — Turner, Lowden, The Crown’s Josh O’Connor and one unnamed actor, the three named men the Daily profiled when the tests were first reported. Turner is not short of heavyweight backing: George Clooney, who directed him in The Boys in the Boat, told the Reporter earlier this year, “I hope Callum ends up being the next Bond. I think he would be a great Bond. He’s tall and handsome and charming and British, so he’s the perfect guy to do it.” William Hill now makes Turner the short-priced favourite to succeed Daniel Craig.
The Film Waiting For Him
Whoever wins the part steps into the biggest reboot the franchise has attempted: the first Bond film under Amazon MGM Studios, directed by Denis Villeneuve, with a theatrical release planned for 2028. Brosnan, for his part, expects the director to deliver: “I think we are going to be blown away. [Villeneuve] is such an iconoclastic director. His work is visionary… It’s going to be truly magnificent.” No casting has been confirmed by the studio, and Turner, asked about the rumours in June, said only: “I know as much as you do — really, I know as much as you.” A former Bond’s blessing is not a contract. But in a race being run in public, it is the loudest signal yet about which way the wind is blowing.
The Wait
The wait itself is part of the story. Daniel Craig’s final film, No Time to Die, opened in 2021, and the handover since — Amazon taking creative control of the franchise, Villeneuve’s appointment, and a release window set in 2028 — has stretched the gap between Bond films toward the longest in the series’ history. That vacuum is why a single interview answer can move a betting market: with no production under way and no announcement scheduled, the race currently exists entirely in reporting like this week’s — finalist lists, screen tests, and the verdicts of the men who have worn the tuxedo before.
The Bond Race — In Short
Pierce Brosnan, 007 from 1995 to 2002, told Vanity Fair (published Tuesday, November 3) that he admires all the reported Bond finalists but singled out Callum Turner, 36, his co-star in 2017’s The Only Living Boy in New York: “He’s so strong.” Turner, Jack Lowden and Josh O’Connor head the reported final group after October screen tests; Turner is the bookmakers’ favourite and also carries George Clooney’s endorsement. The next Bond film, directed by Denis Villeneuve for Amazon MGM, is planned for 2028. No casting is confirmed.
Sources: Vanity Fair interview with Pierce Brosnan, published November 3, 2026 (via People and USA Today, November 3, 2026); The Hollywood Reporter finalist reporting, October 2026; TheWrap screen-test reporting, 2026; William Hill market, November 2026.
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