Ex-Bond Casting Chief: Elordi, Turner Too Famous for
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- Debbie McWilliams, Bond's casting director from 1981's "For Your Eyes Only" through 2021's "No Time to Die," told The Independent she doesn't want rumored candidates Elordi, Turner, or Dickinson as 007 because audiences 'know so much about them'
- McWilliams argued Bond must remain a 'total enigma,' citing Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan, and Daniel Craig as actors who weren't household names when cast and saying she wants 'somebody who is completely out of the blue'
- McWilliams also said Bond should stay a man because 'that's how Ian Fleming wrote it,' comparing it to not changing 'Harry Potter to Alice Potter'
- McWilliams retired before Amazon's acquisition of the franchise; the 26th Bond film is now being cast by Nina Gold (who previously cast Daisy Ridley as Rey in Star Wars) and directed by Denis Villeneuve
- Steven Knight ("Peaky Blinders" creator) is writing the screenplay, with Amy Pascal and David Heyman producing
- Amazon confirmed in May that the official search for the next Bond actor was underway, though it declined to comment on specific casting details
Why it matters: McWilliams cast Dalton, Brosnan, and Craig over four decades, so her public rejection of the internet's frontrunners reinforces the 'unknown actor' argument and could nudge Amazon's new casting chief Nina Gold — working with Denis Villeneuve on the 26th installment — toward a less-established pick than Elordi, Turner, or Dickinson.
