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Alexander Skarsgård has thrown his hat into the ring to play a Swedish James Bond as the hunt for the next 007 continues.
Speaking in a new interview with The Times, the 48-year-old True Blood actor was asked whether he would like to play the British spy, to which he replied: “I’m way too Swedish for that.”
However, when he was informed by the journalist that the franchise could be taking a new direction, since Bond producers Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli have passed full creative control over to Amazon MGM, Skarsgård was swayed by the idea of a Scandi Bond.
“Yeah,. I could be a very polite, diplomatic Swedish James Bond, who negotiates,” he said.
When asked whether he could use his past military experience in the Swedish national service for the action scenes, he said he would prefer his Bond to be a peacemaker instead of having regular brushes with death – since previous iterations of Bond are known for their high-speed car chases and violent fight scenes.
“Oh no, there’ll be no violence at all,” he joked. “It’ll just be boardroom meetings where people try to find consensus, everyone’s stressed out and desperately tries to avoid an argument or complications, that’s very Swedish.”
“I’ll pitch it,” he added.
In February, it was announced that Amazon MGM had taken full creative control of the Bond franchise after striking a deal with long-time producers Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli. The duo remain co-owners of the franchise, but the business decision leaves creative control of future James Bond productions in the hands of American-owned Amazon.
The hunt for a new Bond to replace actor Daniel Craig has been ongoing since his fifth and final turn as Bond in 2021’s No Time to Die.
Possible names include Aaron Taylor-Johnson (34), Harris Dickinson (28) and James Norton (39). Taylor-Johnson, however, has since distanced himself from the claims.
When the film arrives, it could beat the record for the longest break between Bond instalments, which currently stands at six years and four months for the wait between 1989’s License to Kill and 1995’s Goldeneye.
Amazon MGM recently confirmed that production for a “fresh” and “exotic” new chapter of the franchise was already underway.
Appearing at Las Vegas’s CinemaCon in April, studio executives Courtenay Valenti and Sue Kroll said that Bond producers Amy Pascal and David Heyman were already in London “getting started” on the long-awaited next instalment.
“We are committed to honouring the legacy of this iconic character while bringing a fresh, exotic new chapter to audiences around the world alongside Amy [Pascal] and David [Heyman],” said Valenti and Kroll.
Skarsgård will star in the forthcoming Apple TV+ ten-parter Murderbot, which is based on the sci-fi novella series The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells. The actor plays a rogue security robot who secretly gains free will.
English (US) ·