Actor Patrick Gibson plays James Bond in the upcoming video game 007: First Light, and he should be considered to play the part in the upcoming movie, according to First Light actor Lennie James.
“He’s fantastic in our version of Bond, and I genuinely think he should be a candidate for the main role that they’re trying to find someone for,” James told Radio Times Gaming, as discovered and reported by GamesRadar. “I’m sure he’s under consideration. The people in control would be mad not to consider him.”
Gibson is known for his roles on The OA and Shadow and Bone, but he rose to a new level of fame and popularity with his starring role as a young Dexter Morgan on Dexter: Origin Sin.
As for James, he is best known for his role as Morgan Jones on AMC’s The Walking Dead and as Lord Shaxx in Destiny. In First Light, James plays Bond’s mentor, John Greenway.
Gibson is Irish, and he would be just the second Irish actor to play James Bond after Pierce Brosnan if he is indeed cast as Bond in the next movie.
The James Bond movie series has been dormant since 2021’s No Time To Die, which was actor Daniel Craig’s fifth and final James Bond movie. Amazon MGM Studios is now the owner and controller of the James Bond movie series, after buying out Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson.
Courtenay Valenti, the head of film at Amazon MGM Studios, recently gave an update on the search for a new James Bond actor at CinemaCon. She said the movie studio is “taking the time to do this with care and deep respect.”
“It is the dream of a lifetime for all of us to bring audiences this next chapter, and it’s a responsibility we don’t take lightly,” Valenti said, as reported by Variety.
The new James Bond movie is being directed by Dune’s Denis Villeneuve, with Amy Pascal (Spider-Man) and David Heyman (Harry Potter) on board as producers. The movie is being written by Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight.
The producers of the new James Bond movie are reportedly looking for a relatively younger actor. Gibson is 31 and would seemingly fit that description, though the producers are of course taking numerous different factors under consideration. Lots of names have been floated, either in reporting or via fancasting, with names like Theo James, Josh O’Connor, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Callum Turner, and Paul Mescal frequently brought up as candidates to play James Bond next.
First Light, too, will focus on a young James Bond. The game is an origin story for James Bond, revealing how he became the world-famous MI6 agent. The game is set for release on May 27 for PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. The game is also coming to Switch 2, but it was delayed to later in the summer.