Next James Bond: UK public wants Idris Elba as new 007

Research from William Hill Vegas has revealed that the British public want Idris Elba to be the next James Bond.

Having surveyed 3,500 people across the UK, the Luther star came out on top amassing 17.5% of the vote and placing him narrowly ahead of Tom Hardy (16.6%) and Henry Cavill (16.5%) as the public’s favourite to replace Daniel Craig. One of the long-standing favourites with William Hill, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, received just 2.7% of votes.

Connery proves to be most popular Bond of all-time

Meanwhile, respondents were likewise asked which actor to have played the British spy in the past was their favourite, with the original James Bond, Sean Connery, receiving a whopping 39.7% of the vote.

Most recent Bond actor Daniel Craig came second with 29.1%, with Roger Moore next in line with 14.7% of the vote. David Niven, who starred in the 1967 version of Casino Royale, finished bottom of the pile with just 0.9% of the vote.

Skyfall voted best film and best song

Perhaps surprisingly, Daniel Craig and Sam Mendes’ Skyfall was voted as the most popular film from the Bond franchise, with 17.5% of those surveyed claiming the 2012 hit was their favourite film.

Sean Connery’s Goldfinger from 1964 came second with 8.7%, while the most recent Bond film, 2021’s No Time To Die, came third with 7%. Sean Connery’s Never Say Never Again from 1983 (0.6%) was deemed the least popular of 007’s previous excursions.

Elsewhere, Adele’s 2012 hit Skyfall, from the Skyfall film, was the public’s favourite Bond song, taking 13.3% of the vote. Paul McCartney & Wings’ Live and Let Die, from the 1973 film Live and Let Die, followed on with 12.2%, with Shirley Bassey’s Goldfinger, from the film Goldfinger in 1964, coming third with 11.5%.

The public’s least favourite Bond song, meanwhile, proved to be Rita Coolidge’s All Time High, from the 1983 film Octopussy, gaining just 0.9% of the vote.