MOVIE NEWS – Fans think they’ve discovered the next James Bond after Daniel Craig, thanks to a strange video of the Game of Thrones star.

James Bond fans believe Game of Thrones star Richard Madden has secretly announced he has been cast as the iconic super spy. The last time Daniel Craig played the role was in the character’s latest outing, 2021’s No Time to Die. Craig made his debut in 2006’s Casino Royale.

Since then, casting developments have been kept under wraps, and several names have surfaced online as potential Bond, including everyone from Idris Elba to Henry Cavill to Ryan Reynolds.

This week, Madden posted a video on Instagram. It also features his co-star from The Citadel, Stanley Tucci. They’re both sipping martinis, and when Tucci asks him how his is, Madden looks straight into the camera and says, “delicious”. This prompted rumours on social media that he had secretly announced he had been cast as 007 in the next James Bond film.

Would Richard Madden be right for James Bond?

Madden would undoubtedly be a solid choice to play James Bond. The actor has proven over the years that he is incredibly versatile. He has shown his talents in various massive projects with various tones. After rising to prominence as Robb Stark in Game of Thrones, he has also starred in the live-action remake of Cinderella, as well as Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Eternals. Both are outstanding projects with a different feel than HBO’s fantasy series.

The requirements for James Bond are many, but one of the most important is that the character is both a suave action hero and a wry comic.

At the time, Madden achieved both aspects of the character. While he played a suave spy in Citadel, he also showed his comedic chops in the 2018 Netflix film Ibiza.

But even if he were a good James Bond, Madden shouldn’t be playing him. His character in the Citadel is too much like James Bond to make the casting fresh and exciting. Part of the attraction of any new Bond is that one can guess how the character and his world will change if a new, more untried performer is given the opportunity to show himself. That wouldn’t happen if Madden were given the role.

Source: Instagram

This is actually the best choice of all the floated names I've seen. He's Scottish, like Sean Connery, which is a nice synch, and Rob Stark to James Bond is one helluva career arc. MT Tweet exchange between Stanley Tucci & Richard Madden hints at new 007?https://t.co/ezf7uZ1GjG

— Tom Siebert (@siebertws13) April 30, 2023

Richard Madden would be an excellent Bond, I think I’d rather have Sam Heughen though (a bit more Connery-esque). Although I’m only going by acting and Bondlike-ness and have no opinion on attractiveness

— Steve Ramsay (@Scotracer) April 29, 2023