James Bond casting director claims younger actors don’t have ‘the mental capacity’ to play 007

As whispers around who will be the next James Bond reach fever pitch, the casting director for the spy franchise has given an interesting insight into what it takes to be 007.

Daniel Craig, 55, bowed out of the role in 2021’s No Time To Die having fronted five films as the spy with a license to kill.

His first time portraying the character was in 2006’s Casino Royale at the age of 38, however Debbie McWilliams, who has worked on the popular series of movies since 1981, revealed that younger actors had originally auditioned for the part but that their youth went against them.

“When we started [work on Casino Royale], it was a slightly different feel,” McWilliams explained to Radio Times.

“We did look at a lot of younger actors. and I just don’t think they had the gravitas, they didn’t have the experience, they didn’t have the mental capacity to take it on, because it’s not just the part they’re taking on, it’s a massive responsibility.”

“So we kind of scrubbed that idea and went back to the drawing board and started again,” she added.

A number of big names have been floated around as to who could replace Craig such Bridgertonstar Regé-Jean Page, Tom Hardy and Aaron Taylor-Johnson.

Idris Elba, Taron Egerton, Henry Cavill, James Norton and have also been in the frame while Emily In Paris star Lucien Laviscount seems a bit of a wild card.