'Being asked to be James Bond was like, 'Okay, you've sort of reached the pinnacle.'' 'I was like, 'This is crazy!' Because James Bond… We're all actors and we understand that role. During a June 2023 appearance on Will Arnett, Jason Bateman, and Sean Hayes's 'SmartLess' podcast (via Entertainment Weekly), Elba said he was initially 'super complimented' by the speculation. There's been a lot of speculation around Idris Elba being cast as the next 007 in the James Bond franchise, however, the 50-year-old actor recently admitted that he got turned off by the idea after the conversation became about race.
