When Spectre open later this fall, six actors will have played James Bond in 24 films over a span of more than 50 years. Due to the nature of the character and the continual turnover, there is constant talk of who should carry the torch next, and while there is no shortage of volunteers, one unexpected celebrity popped out of nowhere and showed his interest in playing the part: David Beckham!
AS the release for Spectre approaches, the talk of a new Bond is obviously intensified, but according to a report in the Mirror, David Beckham is “seriously considering” taking the role of the world’s most famous spy. The legendary soccer star started to think about stepping forward and throwing his hat into the Bond ring alongside other stars, as a result of vocal fans on social media encouraging him to take the plunge.
Before you start shouting his name as the next James Bond from the rooftops, proclaiming David Beckham the heir apparent to the James Bond throne, take a second to breathe and consider that a number of things will need to happen for this to go down. First and foremost, the current Bond – Daniel Craig – will have to vacate the role, which is – by the way – not decided yet. Second, the producers will have to actually decide they want the 40-year-old former athlete to take the part, offer it to him, and work out a contract he’ll have to sign.
While Daniel Craig hasn’t closed the door to playing Bond again in the future, he hasn’t exactly come out and said, “Oh hell yeah, I’m totally going to play James Bond again.” He has reportedly an open contract, and producers have indicated he can play the part as long as he damn well pleases.
While David Beckham has appeared in numerous commercials and as himself, his acting career is still in its infancy. He showed up just last month as “Projectionist” in Guy Ritchie’s spy romp The Man From U.N.C.L.E., and his biggest part will be in Ritchie’s upcoming Knights of the Round Table: King Arthur. But it’s not exactly a headlining role, as he plays a super gross knight with broken, rotten teeth, and only a few lines. Talking about the part, Beckham said:
“I had 13 lines and I practiced a huge amount beforehand. Guy had someone come and rehearse with me and I did an hour of it every day.”
As he admits he was hugely nervous on set, jumping from a part with 13 lines to playing one of the most beloved movie characters of all time, one who is almost always on screen and has to carry a movie, might be a bit of an unreasonable leap to make at this juncture.