Just a few days ago, Bridgerton star Regé-Jean Page was 40-1 to be the next James Bond after Daniel Craig. The 31-year-old British-Zimbabwean then saw his odds slashed down to 16-1 and now he’s closing in on the three frontrunners Tom Hardy, Idris Elba and James Norton. According to Ladbrokes, the Duke of Hastings star is now 5-1 to take up the Licence to Kill after No Time To Die.
Page has leapfrogged over the likes of Cillian Murphy, Jack Lowden, Richard Madden and Sam Heughan.
And he’s now just behind Idris Elba on 7-2, James Norton on 7-4 and favourite Tom Hardy on 6-4.
A spokesman for the bookies said: “We’ve seen plenty of interest in Rege-Jean Page off the back of Bridgerton’s success.
“And we wouldn’t be surprised to see him overtake Idris Elba, James Norton and even Top Hardy into top spot in the betting.”
READ MORE: Next James Bond: Regé-Jean Page BACKED for new 007 by Bridgerton fans
For the last few weeks, Page has had a tweet including a possible cryptic 007 reference pinned to the top of his official Twitter account.
The Bridgerton video clip saw his Duke of Hastings character walking towards the camera and raising his eyebrow in a way that wouldn’t look out of place in one of Roger Moore’s Bond movies.
While above he wrote, “Regency, royalty. Shaken and stirred”, with the latter sounding rather similar to 007’s well-known drink order for a dry vodka martini; “shaken, not stirred”.
Interestingly, the 31-year-old has recently unpinned the tweet which can still be found further down his Twitter page.
Broccoli has repeatedly said that while Bond will always be male, producers are open to actors of any colour so Page could well be within a chance of being the first BAME incarnation of Ian Fleming’s spy.
He’d also be in his mid-thirties around the time of his first outing if cast, which is around the age Craig was for Casino Royale.
While his turn as the Duke of Hastings in Bridgerton has shown that the incredibly handsome star can not only play an English gent well, but also a mysterious bachelor and ladies man.
On plans for the next Bond reboot Broccoli has shared that fans are in for a “reimaging” of the character.
Speaking with Total Film in October last year, Broccoli said: “It will have to be reimagined, in the way each actor has reimagined the role.
“That’s what is so exciting and fun about this franchise; the character evolves. Eventually, when we have to think about it, we’ll find the right person. He doesn’t need to be a white man. Not as far as I’m concerned.”
The 007 franchise celebrates its 60th anniversary next year, so perhaps James Bond Day October 5, 2022, would be the perfect time to announce the new star.
No Time To Die is released in cinemas on April 2, 2020.
