Crazy action film favorite Jason Statham recently gave a great interview to The Guardian about his latest film, Paul Feig’s Spy, and also touched on his other roles and stunt work. When James Bond came up, Statham expressed his enthusiasm for playing the iconic secret agent with words that other media outlets censor but that we here publish: “Could I do it? Abso-fucking-lutely. Would I do it? Abso-fucking-lutely. Is Daniel Craig a great Bond? Abso-fucking-lutely.”
Would this writer love to see Jason Statham play James Bond? Abso-fucking-lutely.
As this year’s Spectre will be Daniel Craig’s penultimate turn as Bond under his current contract, the franchise machine may need a new secret service agent to take on the role. Idris Elba might be a more realistic pick (Rush Limbaugh’s racist thoughts on the matter notwithstanding), but Statham would certainly bring a new level of manic commitment to the character. Statham apparently realizes he has something different to offer from the standard handsome leading man: “I’d make a decent Bond,” he said. “But it’d be very, very different if I did it.”
He doesn’t want to play a Bond villian, though. “I don’t know if I wanna to do that,” he said. “That’s not my thing. I’d rather play the other guy.”