Saoirse Ronan wants to play the Bond villain if husband Jack Lowden lands the 007 role
Jack Barton, seen here in SAS: Rogue Heroes, is described by insiders as 'The One' for Bond — trained at the Oxford School of Drama, he is best known for playing villain David Nelson in Heartstopper.Jack Lowden is among five other actors on the shortlist alongside surprise frontrunner Jack Barton, with screen tests for the 007 role set to begin in early September.Callum Turner, whose Bond odds have collapsed to just 15% on Polymarket after his film 'One Night Only' flopped, remains among the six-man screen test shortlist.Jacob Elordi, one of six actors reportedly shortlisted for James Bond, faces screen tests in early September as producer Amy Pascal aims to confirm the new 007 before the year is out.Paul Mescal is among the six shortlisted actors set to screen test for James Bond in early September, with casting director Nina Gold leading the search for 007.Harris Dickinson is among the six finalists vying for 007, with Amazon MGM Studios said to be seeking an entirely new energy for the Bond franchise.
Irish Oscar nominee Saoirse Ronan has told Empire magazine she is "dead serious" about playing the next Bond villain, revealing she wants to "go dark" for her next role. If both she and frontrunner husband Jack Lowden land their respective parts, they would become the first married couple to face off in a Bond film. Lowden, 36, is among the leading candidates to succeed Daniel Craig, and is reportedly being "strongly considered" as the audition process enters its final stages.
Apple and Amazon are at loggerheads over Lowden because he plays MI5 agent River Cartwright in Apple's 'Slow Horses', making it near-impossible to also star as Bond.
There are reportedly huge egos at play between Apple and Amazon, with neither wanting to lose out to the other in what is described as an ongoing battle.
If cast, Lowden would become only the second Scottish actor to play Bond after the late Sean Connery.
