George Clooney has thrown his weight behind Callum Turner as the next James Bond as the search for the next 007 continues. The 36-year-old British actor, best known for the Fantastic Beasts films and Apple TV+’s Masters of the Air has been one of the most talked-about names in the Bond rumor mill for years.
Amazon MGM, which acquired full creative control over the Bond franchise from longtime producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G Wilson officially announced last month that casting for the new 007 was underway, with Dune director Denis Villeneuve set to helm the film which is the first in the franchise since 2021. Veteran producers Amy Pascal and David Heyman are on board and Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight is writing the script, according to People.
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George Clooney makes his pick
Clooney, 65, has publicly backed Turner for the iconic spy role. “I hope Callum ends up being the next Bond. I think he would be a great Bond,” Clooney said, as per The Hollywood Reporter. “He’s tall and handsome and charming and British, so he’s the perfect guy to do it.”
The endorsement carries some weight, Clooney directed Turner in the 2023 sports drama The Boys in the Boat, so his opinion comes from firsthand experience working together. He also praised Turner’s career choices beyond the Bond conversation. “He hasn’t just gone for the easy paychecks, he’s done really interesting work,” Clooney said.
“Somehow Callum has weaved his way through all of the noise and found a place where people look at him and go, ‘There’s something with this young man.’ It’s exciting to watch people saying, ‘That guy, that’s a guy I want to follow and pay attention to.’”
What has Callum Turner said about the Bond rumors?
Despite all the buzz, Turner says he is just as in the dark as everyone else. “I know as much as you do, really, I know as much as you do,” he told The Hollywood Reporter. When asked if he is even interested in the role, he said simply: “I’m not going to comment on that.”
Turner did acknowledge the strange experience of being at the center of a rumor about a job he has no information about, per People. “I’ll tell you what’s so funny about the Bond thing: Even your best friends ask you, people text you that you haven’t spoken to for 10 years and you know nothing!” he said. “It’s such a weird thing of something happening and nothing happening at all. I genuinely know nothing. I just find it quite amusing.”
Turner is currently promoting his new rom-com One Night Only alongside Monica Barbaro. He also recently married pop star Dua Lipa, with whom he has been in a relationship since 2024.
