Tom Hanks Reveals The Actor He Wants To See Play James Bond Next

Who will play James Bond next? Many want to know who will follow up Daniel Craig's five-movie run as the iconic British superspy. We still don't know, but if it were up to Tom Hanks, he'd like to see Idris Elba get the role.

"Understand this," Hanks told the BBC. "James Bond has a license to kill. I would issue that license to Idris Elba just based on the work that I've seen him do."

Hanks made this comment in a conversation about the ongoing trend of altering and editing books to remove language that could be deemed offensive. The James Bond series is often brought up in this conversation due to the amendments made to Ian Fleming's James Bond novel series to address concerns around sexism and other issues.

Hanks said editing old books to suit modern audiences might not be necessary. "I'm of the opinion that we're all grown-ups here. Let's have faith in our own sensibilities as opposed to having somebody decide what we may or may not be offended by," he said. "Let me decide what I am offended by and what I'm not offended by. I would be against reading any book from any era that says 'abridged due to modern sensitivities'."

Going back to the James Bond casting, unfortunately for Hanks, Elba has already taken himself out of the running. "I'm not going to be that guy," Elba said earlier this year.

For a long time, fans have suggested enthusiastically that Elba could be the next James Bond. Even the longtime producers of the series said they like Elba.

Craig played James Bond in five films, ending with 2021's No Time To Die. The question of who will play Bond next is something movie fans want the answer to, but we still don't know.

Producer Barbara Broccoli said the next James Bond movie will be a "reinvention" of the character, and it could take some time to find the right person. "It's about a reinvention, and, 'Where are we taking it? What do we want to do with the character?'" she said. "And then, once we figure that out, who's the right person for that particular reinvention?"

Whoever gets the role will need to sign on for numerous films over a decade, Broccoli said.

"The thing is, it's going to be a couple of years off," she said. "And when we cast Bond, it's a 10-, 12-year commitment. So he's probably thinking, 'Do I really want that thing?' Not everybody wants to do that. It was hard enough getting [Daniel Craig to do it]."