Jason Statham Is Still Interested in Playing James Bond

When Mechanic: Resurrection star Jason Statham chatted with Yahoo Movies Senior Editor Kevin Polowy, he was asked about maybe the most famous action movie character of all time — James Bond. In the past, Statham has indicated interest in playing 007. For instance, In 2015 he told the Guardian “Could I do it? Abso-f***ng-lutely. Would I do it? Abso-f***ing-lutely.” Turns out he’s still into the part.

“I like the James Bond franchise for all the right reasons,” Statham said. “I mean, I work in the action movie sort of genre. You know, the things [Bond] gets to do is something that’s very appealing to me. So, if it ever came my way, it would be an easy answer for me. But, you know, it’s not something I’m pursuing. And I’m certainly not going begging or anything like that.”

It’s hard to imagine Statham begging for anything, but he had a good reason he’s not desperate for the part, saying, “I think James Bond now, it’s not a standalone [movie]. You know, back in the day, that was the only type of film in its own sort of way that was doing these international sort of locations with high-end action. Nowadays you got Jason Bourne, you’ve got Mission Impossible, you can do your own thing.”
Currently not much is doing with the James Bond franchise. New actors surface nearly every week as rumored candidates to take on the part, including Tom Hiddleston, Tom Hardy, and probably another Tom somewhere out there. It’s also possible Daniel Craig, who Statham, by the way, thinks is great in the role, might return. But as of right now, nothing’s official.

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