Advertisement

Bond 25: Fans want Tom Hardy to play the villain opposite Daniel Craig

The fans have spoken – they want Tom Hardy to be the villain in ‘Bond 25’ (Reuters/EON)
The fans have spoken – they want Tom Hardy to be the villain in ‘Bond 25’ (Reuters/EON)

James Bond fans have voted for ‘Dunkirk’ star Tom Hardy as the actor they most want to see play the villain in 2019’s ‘Bond 25’, and we think they’ve made an excellent choice.

As Hardy proved in ‘The Revenant’ and ‘The Dark Knight Rises’, he’s able to bring a dangerous and unpredictable edge to antagonist roles and we think he’d make a great match for 007.

The poll of over 1000 film buffs, conducted by Yahoo Movies, also revealed that fans want Daniel Craig to return as 007, Christopher Nolan to direct, ‘Wonder Woman’ star Gal Gadot as the Bond girl, and Adele to return for the theme song.

Eon Productions recently announced ‘Bond 25’ would be coming to cinemas in November 2019, so read on to find out how the polls played out.

Who should play James Bond in ‘Bond 25’?

Actor Daniel Craig poses at the Mexican premiere of the new James Bond 007 film “Spectre” (REUTERS/Ginnette Riquelme/File Photo)
Actor Daniel Craig poses at the Mexican premiere of the new James Bond 007 film “Spectre” (REUTERS/Ginnette Riquelme/File Photo)

Nearly half of the fans who voted in our ‘Bond 25’ poll want Daniel Craig to return for the fifth James Bond film, with the incumbent 007 earning 47% of the votes. In second place Tom Hardy also proved a popular choice for the hero role taking 23% of votes, while Tom Hiddleston and Idris Elba were tied in third place with just 9% of votes.

Who should direct ‘Bond 25’?

Christopher Nolan poses at the AFI Awards 2014. (REUTERS/Kevork Djansezian)
Christopher Nolan poses at the AFI Awards 2014. (REUTERS/Kevork Djansezian)

Riding high on the critical acclaim of ‘Dunkirk’, Christopher Nolan emerged as fans’ top choice to direct the 25th official 007 movie. Nolan earned a whopping 57%, while ‘Skyfall’ and ‘SPECTRE’ director Sam Mendes came in second place with 23% of votes. It was really only a two-horse race in this category, with Kathryn Bigelow (‘Detroit’) and Denis Villeneuve (‘Arrival’) coming in third with just 5% of the votes apiece. Nolan recently expressed an interest in directing a James Bond adventure if EON Productions wanted a franchise reboot saying, “Maybe one day that would work out. You’d have to be needed, if you know what I mean. It has to need reinvention; it has to need you.”

Who should be the Bond girl in ‘Bond 25’?

Cast member Gal Gadot poses at the premiere of “Wonder Woman” in Los Angeles, California U.S., May 25, 2017. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni
Cast member Gal Gadot poses at the premiere of “Wonder Woman” in Los Angeles, California U.S., May 25, 2017. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni

‘Wonder Woman’ star Gal Gadot was the clear winner in this category taking 34% of the votes. The Israeli star seems like a natural fit for the franchise, but the success of ‘Wonder Woman’ has proved she deserves top billing alongside Daniel Craig, something that hasn’t happened on Bond since ‘Die Another Day’ when Halle Berry took equal billing with Pierce Brosnan. ‘Game of Thrones’ star Emilia Clarke was the fans’ second choice with 12% of the vote, while Priyanka Chopra (‘Baywatch’) and Karen Gillan (‘Guardians of the Galaxy’) shared third place with 9% of votes.

Who should play the villain in ‘Bond 25’?

Actor Tom Hardy at the British premiere of “The Revenant” (REUTERS/Toby Melville)
Actor Tom Hardy at the British premiere of “The Revenant” (REUTERS/Toby Melville)

Tom Hardy was a bit of a wild card when we compiled our wishlist of potential Bond baddies for the poll, but he proved to be a popular choice taking 28% of the votes. His status in Hollywood makes him an unlikely choice for the producers of ‘Bond 25’, but should Nolan get the gig like fans want, it may not seem that far-fetched. Michael Keaton came in second place with 13% of the votes, presumably because of his scene-stealing turn as Vulture in ‘Spider-Man: Homecoming’. We have to admit Peter Dinklage’s third place with 11% of the vote is disappointing, because we think the ‘Game of Thrones’ star would make a memorable Bond villain.

Who should sing the ‘Bond 25’ theme song?

Adele holds the five Grammys she won including Record of the Year for “Hello” and Album of the Year for “25” during the 59th Annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles, California, U.S. , February 12, 2017. REUTERS/Mike Blake TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
Adele holds the five Grammys she won including Record of the Year for “Hello” and Album of the Year for “25” during the 59th Annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles, California, U.S. , February 12, 2017. REUTERS/Mike Blake TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY

The issue of the ‘Bond 25’ theme song proved to be the most divisive for fans. ‘Skyfall’ singer Adele took the top spot with just 27% of the vote, while Coldplay and Muse tied for second place on 15% each. ‘Chandelier’ singer Sia took third place with 12% of votes.

Here’s the full results of our poll below.

Who should play James Bond?

Daniel Craig – 47%
Tom Hardy – 23%
Tom Hiddleston – 9%
Idris Elba – 9%
Aidan Turner – 4%
Dan Stevens – 2%
Emily Blunt – 2%
James Norton – 2%
Riz Ahmed – 1%
Jamie Bell – 1%

Who should direct ‘Bond 25’?

Christopher Nolan – 56%
Sam Mendes – 23%
Kathryn Bigelow – 5%
Denis Villeneuve – 5%
Martin Campbell – 4%
Suzanne Bier – 2%
Patty Jenkins – 2%
Yann Demange – 1%
David Mackenzie – 1%
Paul McGuigan – 1%

Who should be the next Bond girl?

Gal Gadot – 34%
Emilia Clarke – 12%
Karen Gillan – 9%
Priyanka Chopra – 9%
Elizabeth Debicki – 8%
Alexandra Daddario – 8%
Lily James – 7%
Sofia Boutella – 6%
Ruth Negga – 5%
Eiza Gonzalez – 3%

Who should play Bond’s adversary?

Tom Hardy – 28%
Michael Keaton – 13%
Peter Dinklage – 11%
Andy Serkis – 9%
Kenneth Branagh – 8%
Jessica Chastain – 7%
Ben Mendelsohn – 7%
Stellan Skarsgård – 7%
Nikolaj Coster-Waldau – 6%
Daniel Brühl – 5%

Who should sing the ‘Bond 25’ theme song?
Adele – 27%
Coldplay – 15%
Muse – 15%
Sia – 12%
Arctic Monkeys – 8%
Radiohead – 8%
Beyonce – 4%
Rihanna – 4%
Arcade Fire 3%
The Weeknd – 3%


Read more
Domino pic prompts predictable backlash
Tabloid scalded over Bond 25 fake news
Star Wars 9 script getting a rewrite