I've got a strong preference for iconic characters to retain their look, whether they're Bond, Blade, Snape or Shang-Chi, but Elba could've made a fantastic Bond villain. Still could, as long as they don't put too much prosthetic makeup on his face to act through, or whatever happened with Beyond.
Also, man I can't stand the word woke, but I get what he's saying there.
Thing is Bond should change with the times, that's one of the major reasons the franchise has survived, because it has evolved and cherry picked things from the prevailing pop culture at the time. That's why LALD is a Blaxploitation film, why TMWTGG is a kung fu movie, why FYEO got bumped in favour of Moonraker because Star Wars was such a big hit! Why Bond carries a .44 magnum in LALD and why there's a character called Jaws in TSWLM and MR. It's why LTK feels like a Lethal Weapon/Die Hard actioner at times and why the Daniel Craig films a first aped Bourne and then the Nolan Batman films.
As for woke look at Dalton, the monogamous Bond for the Aids era in 1987! Even Brosnan was perceived as being a different kind of Bond for the 90s.More in touch with his feelings. And what's more woke than a female M!
I don't want a kind fluffy Bond, but it's perfectly possible for him to be a hard drinking killer who shags at will whilst still not being offensive to minorities or a toxic sexual predator.
Sure, Tracy his murdered wife has been the confirmation since the 1970s. Lazenby, Moore, Dalton and Brosnan all share direct or thinly veiled references to her murder in 1969 and how that loss has gone on to scar and change James over the succeeding decades.
Though Tracy isn't directly mentioned in Diamonds Are Forever it seems the producers' intent to have Connery's Bond hunting down Blofeld with such savage intensity in the pre-titles sequence on behalf of his murdered bride. So in effect all five "Prime" Bonds share a Tracy connection, even if unspoken.
I'm trying to recall the references in Brosnan. I know the Moore and Dalton ones (and on the subject of Rog anyone who thinks the man has no acting chops needs to see the flicker of emotion that he shows when XXX mentions Tracy) but the Brosnan one(s) must have been more oblique.
Elba is 53, if he was ever in a position to play Bond, it would have been ten years ago after DC said in a 2015 after filming SPECTRE that he would rather slash his wrists than play Bond again. This was also the point in time where his possible casting seemed prominent, and Anthony Horowitz made some unfortunate comments about Elba's casting during the press tour for Trigger Mortis.
Having finished First Light, my money is on Patrick Gibson, but would not object to Callum Turner. Ive largely given up on Cavill and ATJ - the former is likely too old now. I would have said Henry Golding or Rege Jean Pagr in 2018 and 2020, but they've shown that they doesn't have the charisma to lead a major franchise like Bond. I just hope to God it isn't Elordi or Holland.
Aaron Pierre could be a good call, if it weren't for Lanterns and the DCU.
It's weird because I've been a fan of Elba longer than most (going all the way back to the sublime Ultraviolet in '98) but I've never seen him as Bond, and I have no issue with a Bond of colour (when Craig left I thought Salmon would make a damn fine Bond and both John Boyega and Rege Jean-Page are on my Bond list).
Most of my preferences are now too old unfortunately. Cavill, Turner, Fassbender.
I haven't seen many of the current favourites in much (oddly it's only Elordi's height that puts me off him) I can't see Turner as Bond. Holland is too associated with Spidey.
I'm fairly confident that when its announced most of us will go "Who?" I reckon it'll be some up and coming theatre star and Bond will be his big break, possibly even his first film role.
I do wonder if Taylor Johnson was ever in the running, was it all BS or was he high on Eon's list before they sold out to Amazon I wonder?
