THOR Star Idris Elba Responds To Recent JAMES BOND Casting Speculation

THOR Star Idris Elba Responds To Recent JAMES BOND Casting Speculation

"Sony Hack" documents revealed that the studio were keen on the idea of Idris Elba playing James Bond, while the actor has expressed interest in the role in the past. Following Rush Limbaugh's controversial comments about all of that, the Luther star has fired back...

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By JoshWilding - Dec 28, 2014 08:12 AM EST
Filed Under: Action
It's no secret that Idris Elba is interested in the role of James Bond (as long as it's not simply so he can be classified as "The Black Bond"), while some recently leaked emails confirmed that Sony Pictures were also keen on him possibly taking over the role somewhere down the line. Now, following Rush Limbaugh's controversial comments that, "Sony is suggesting that the next James Bond should be Idris Elba, a black Briton rather than a white from Scotland. But that's not who James Bond is, and I know it's racist to probably even point this out," the Thor star has responded in a tongue in cheek manner on Twitter. Would you like to see Elba play 007? Sound off below!

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JoshWilding
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A lifelong comic book fan who grew up on Spider-Man: The Animated Series in the '90s, Josh Wilding has been contributing to ComicBookMovie.com since 2009.

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Itsbeenfun
Itsbeenfun - 12/28/2014, 8:36 AM
tokens
tokens - 12/28/2014, 8:44 AM
id love elba to pay 007.
as im sure the international ladies would also love some BBC action.
batman001
batman001 - 12/28/2014, 8:49 AM
lol i've literally just posted this lol freaking funny as hell tho
SauronsBANE
SauronsBANE - 12/28/2014, 8:50 AM
SauronsBANE
SauronsBANE - 12/28/2014, 8:50 AM
Idris Elba for Bond, make it happen!
MarkyMarkRises
MarkyMarkRises - 12/28/2014, 8:52 AM
Haha the guy's got some humor.

Also, thought about Idris as Bond.....I can't dig it. Almost like with Craig, he's a little bit old to even start.
However, if he was younger, his black bond wasn't made up to be a circus, and his character was actually British, I would've been down for it.
ChemicalGhost
ChemicalGhost - 12/28/2014, 8:54 AM
I want this to happen! I wonder if Limbaugh knows that the only Scottish actor to play James Bond was Sean Connery. Not that I think he made those comments for anything else besides creating controversy.
String
String - 12/28/2014, 8:55 AM
Hnnestly, I've never taken anything Rush Limbaugh serious enough to warrant debating. The guy is a tool and a caricature of American politics. But what he does now is simply reopen the debate between diversity and those who want to keep to tradition. I'm all for diversity to a point but Rush's total ineptitude of researching his source material just shows how unqualified he is to make this a reasonable debate.
MatchesMalone
MatchesMalone - 12/28/2014, 8:55 AM
Limbaugh's an asshat.
SauronsBANE
SauronsBANE - 12/28/2014, 8:56 AM
Does Limbaugh ever do anything without the purpose of creating controversy? And this is coming from someone who somewhat leans conservative.
Itsbeenfun
Itsbeenfun - 12/28/2014, 9:07 AM
@SauronsBANE

Nope. All of these political advocates only look to cause controversy, which is why I don't believe in politics.
TheOverlord
TheOverlord - 12/28/2014, 9:07 AM
Canon108
Canon108 - 12/28/2014, 9:10 AM
Bond isn't black, it would be moronic to change 60 years of established material just because. Elba could play 004 or some other MI6 agent. But he's too old for bond, and he looks nothing like the character that was realised by Fleming. Henry Cavill will likely be the next bond.
Torpedo
Torpedo - 12/28/2014, 9:11 AM
I'm not a huge 007 fan, but after Star Wars, Age of Ultron, and Ant-Man, SPECTRE is the movie I am most excited to see in 2015. SKYFALL, while great, did a terrific job of making Daniel Craig look over the hill as a 00- agent. I wouldn't mind some new blood and I wouldn't mind at all if the part went to a black actor. Idris Elba would be a nice choice, though I would prefer Chiwetel Ejiofor mentioned earlier by @Chaud.
SauronsBANE
SauronsBANE - 12/28/2014, 9:13 AM
If Bond being white was somehow integral and a core, irreplaceable attribute of the character, then I could understand people being hesitant to have his race changed. But it's not. Him being British, suave, intelligent, resourceful, womanizing, and a badass spy are far more important than him having blue eyes and white skin, and Elba certainly has the talent to portray a character like that.

On the other hand, Elba's only 4 years younger than Craig, so I can understand age being an issue. But don't make it about race.

@Bazinga I wouldn't say ALL, but I can certainly understand your sentiment. Politics suck, no doubt haha.
Battabing
Battabing - 12/28/2014, 9:21 AM
Gawd, Rush Limbaugh continues to be a national embarrassment.
Doesn't he have sexy time to make with lady-boys in Bangkok?
gurugeorge
gurugeorge - 12/28/2014, 9:26 AM
Try hard to appease the PC gods.

Instead of arbitrarily changing the skin colour of a well-established character, why not create a black character that's equally interesting, charismatic and long-lasting?
Lizardking310
Lizardking310 - 12/28/2014, 9:27 AM
He would be awesome as bond!... It's just a code name anyways that's how they explain the different actors who have played the role !
KaneRomita
KaneRomita - 12/28/2014, 9:30 AM
Can we replace Limbaugh.? Or misplace him?
SauronsBANE
SauronsBANE - 12/28/2014, 9:31 AM
Why do people automatically assume this is "arbitrary"? Clearly Sony simply thought that Elba was the best actor for this role, and they simply didn't let his skin color get in the way of that opinion.

And besides, what has a better chance of sticking around and being profitable in the long run: James Bond, or a newly-created spy character that is exactly like Bond in every single aspect...apart from his skin color and his name? Clearly, it's the former. I actually do agree that creating more original, diverse characters is the ultimate goal...but there's also nothing wrong with sticking with an established character as well, especially one who has gone through countless reboots and countless different appearances.

Bond fanboys got over Daniel Craig having blonde hair, I'm sure they'll get used to this too.
JohnnyCloud
JohnnyCloud - 12/28/2014, 9:33 AM
@Canon108, you are missing the point, NOT changing 60 years of established material would be moronic.
Change is the very essence of life.
Iconic characters such as Bond have to evolve if they want to continue to exist.
The Fleming books were the starting point but Bond has already had a long life beyond them.
He shouldn't be beholding to the books beyond the bare essence; British, charismatic secret agent, "Q", "M", Moneypenny etc...
Being white was a product of the times at which the books were written, unless you make a movie set in the 50's or 60's there is no reason for Bond not to be black.
Elba is by far the most charismatic British actor working today, he is a perfect fit for Bond.
If you really want your Bond to be white you can re-watch the already existing films, they're not going anywhere.
GUNSMITH
GUNSMITH - 12/28/2014, 9:37 AM
ACTUALLY WOULD LIKE TO SEE FASSBENDER PLAY BOND
Brainiac13
Brainiac13 - 12/28/2014, 9:44 AM
Just make him a 006 or 008.
SauronsBANE
SauronsBANE - 12/28/2014, 9:46 AM
The Bourne series is actually a good example of what I'm trying to say here. Here you had the previously-established Matt Damon Bourne character, but then they tried to develop a spin-off character (Jeremy Renner's character) that existed in that universe, who was another spy, and who was pretty much identical to Bourne except in name. And the decreased financial and critical acclaim of The Bourne Legacy is proof that spin-offs rarely are as effective as the real thing.

That explains why Sony simply doesn't create another 00 agent with Elba in the lead. Those kinds of things don't have a history of doing well, so it's understandable that they'd instead cast someone like Elba as Bond himself.
BlackPhillip
BlackPhillip - 12/28/2014, 9:46 AM
Elba is cool and all, but this proves that Sony doesn't know what to do with their two biggest franchises.
RexDartEskimoSpy
RexDartEskimoSpy - 12/28/2014, 9:51 AM
Idris would be awesome, but he's the bigger question: Is the world ready for a ginger 007?
Emblemmaniac
Emblemmaniac - 12/28/2014, 9:51 AM
Well, if they want a black James Bond, Idris is a great actor so why not? He is at least brittish
HulkOnion
HulkOnion - 12/28/2014, 9:55 AM
"Instead of arbitrarily changing the skin colour of a well-established character, why not create a black character that's equally interesting, charismatic and long-lasting?"
HulkOnion
HulkOnion - 12/28/2014, 9:57 AM
What a great quote, someone please attempt to counter that.
(If you can you're either a minority who thinks ye is a slave or are a hipster)
HulkOnion
HulkOnion - 12/28/2014, 9:57 AM
Although I do love Elba's reponse...
Canon108
Canon108 - 12/28/2014, 9:58 AM
@Lizardking310

There is no code name, the same man has been 007 the entire time. Lazenby's bond got married, Moore's Bond visited her grave, Dalton's bond mentioned her in Licence to kill...

In Casino Royals Bond was given the alias Arlington Beach to use but threw it out as soon as they got to the hotel desk. Then in Skyfall we saw his mother and father's grave...his birth name is James Bond, and he will never be black since people don't change races overnight.
quintis
quintis - 12/28/2014, 9:59 AM
Enough Political Correctness!! Between a Black Johnny Storm and This, It sucks these people think they need to change everything!! RUSH is Right!! Just give everyone a trophy just for showing up!! It just sucks!!!
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