When the mantle of James Bond passed from the dashing Pierce Brosnan to Daniel Craig, people began to prophesize the franchise's end. Brosnan's definitive take on the character helped Bond retain his cultural relevance amongst a sea of competitors. Lest we forget, Brosnan's Bond was able to hold his own while running parallel to Schwarzenegger's box office dominance.
In retrospect, the reservations around Craig were silly. For starters, Craig had no intentions of dyeing his hair to match Brosnan's raven-colored do. Now that Craig has exited the role, the old song has begun anew. Despite the copious buzz around Idris Elba—who has become quite the box office draw—several fans have deemed the actor unfit to claim the role due to his ethnicity. However, even though throngs of Bond enthusiasts would love to Elba inhabit the role, one contractual obligation might make it impossible. According to Variety, the custodians of the Bond franchise are demanding at least a decade of service from their 007.
For a while, that person seemed to be Idris Elba. But the "Luther" star recently said he didn't see Bond when he "looks in the mirror" — remarks that some have interpreted as Elba's valediction to 007. Broccoli and Wilson hadn't recently spoken to the long-time Bond candidate at the time of this interview, but they say they understand. "He's great," says Wilson, and Broccoli quickly adds, "We love Idris." "The thing is, it's going to be a couple of years off," she notes. "And when we cast Bond, it's a 10-, 12-year commitment. So he's probably thinking, 'Do I really want that thing? Not everybody wants to do that. It was hard enough getting [Daniel Craig to do it]." Wilson interjects: "And he was in his early 30s at the time!"
