Callum Turner has become the bookmakers’ leading contender to play James Bond in the next film, following a recent round of screen tests and praise from former 007 Pierce Brosnan. William Hill has cut Turner’s odds from 3/1 to 8/13, while Jack Lowden, previously the favourite, is now at 2/1.
Josh O’Connor, who also auditioned recently, is listed at 9/2. Richard Madden, Robert Pattinson and Joe Alwyn are each at 16/1. The odds do not confirm who will be cast in the film, which is directed by Denis Villeneuve.
Speculation around Turner intensified after he resigned as a director of Twentytwo Films Ltd, the production company he founded last August with his wife, musician Dua Lipa. The couple also shared Halloween photographs of themselves sipping martinis, the cocktail associated with Bond.
Brosnan, who worked with Turner on the 2017 film The Only Living Boy in New York, praised the actor in an interview with Vanity Fair. “Callum is someone I’ve worked with, and he’s so strong,” he said. Brosnan added that he admired all the actors reportedly in contention, citing their presence on screen and longevity.
Lowden has called the rumours linking him to the role flattering, but said he would not add to the speculation. O’Connor described being considered for Bond as an extraordinary and “pinch-me” moment in an interview with the BBC.
The production company has not said when the casting decision will be announced. Producer Amy Pascal has said the news is likely to be revealed by the end of the year. The film is the 26th in the series and is reported to be scheduled for release in 2028.
Turner’s screen credits include the Fantastic Beasts films, The Boys in the Boat and Eternity. He is also set to appear in Rosebush Pruning and the series Neuromancer, and is currently working on Possession and The Comebacker.
The new film will follow Daniel Craig’s final appearance as Bond in No Time to Die, released in 2021. Amazon MGM Studios took creative control of the franchise in a deal worth more than $1bn in February 2025. Villeneuve was subsequently named director, with Steven Knight writing the screenplay.
Sources: The Guardian Film.