New art reveals what the next James Bond could look like

  • New art imagines what the next James Bond looks like, based on an AI interpretation of official casting requirements outlined by Barbara Broccoli 
  • The Bond producer revealed that the next 007 would be a British male actor under 40 years of age and over 5’10 in height, following fan speculation 
  • When those requirements are inputted into an AI generator, the resulting images bear a notable resemblance to some fan favourites for the role 
  • The image looks most like current 007 frontrunner Aaron Taylor-Johnson, who coincidentally meets both the casting age and height requirements

New art reveals what the next James Bond could look like, based on the only official confirmation of casting guidelines released so far, from Barbara Broccoli herself.

The image, created by Hearts Land, was a result of inputting the casting guidelines as a prompt into an AI art generator as follows: ‘British actor under 40 years old and over 5′ 10 in height, to play the next James Bond’ – and the results are pretty astounding. 

And despite not including any reference to any current actors or James Bond frontrunners, the image bears a strikingly close resemblance to current favourite, Aaron Taylor-Johnson.

The image shows a James Bond with the same skin colour, eye colour and hair colour as Taylor-Johnson, and even bears a similar facial expression as the High Wycombe-born star.

At 32 years old and 5’ 11 in height, Aaron is a perfect fit – and is currently having a resurgence in popularity on social media, as fans praised his images from Calvin Klein’s Spring 2023 campaign, which he starred in alongside Michael B. Jordan and Kendall Jenner.

Coincidentally, he’s currently the favourite to play the next James Bond at most bookmakers, having dethroned The Witcher’s Henry Cavill last week in the running. 

And whilst the image is by no means conclusive evidence that Aaron-Taylor Johnson is the next James Bond, it’s a good sign that even AI is able to imagine him stepping in the role, with speculation still rife after Daniel Craig stepped down from the role two years ago. 

The argument could be made for other James Bond favourites, too, as the AI image bears some passing resemblance to James Norton, Sam Hueghan and Michael Fassbender. 

As well as imagining what the next James Bond will look like, Hearts Land also asked the AI generator to visualise the next Bond girl, based on the following prompt: ‘Mid-twenties British actress at 5’ 7 in height, to play the next Bond girl’ – and the results are also cool. 

There are no official guidelines for Bond’s love interest, but previous casting choices reveal she’s typically aged between 20 and 30, and has yet to be taller than 007 himself. In fact, Gemma Arterton previously revealed Daniel Craig wore shoe lifts to appear taller than her.

And based on the image, the next Bond girl will be a bombshell, with luminous blue eyes, a stunning complexion and long flowing hair that’s sure to turn 007’s head.

It’s harder to match the AI interpretation to a specific actress given there’s less speculation for that role compared to Bond, but it does bear some resemblance to Doctor Who’s Caitlin Blackwood (22 years), and her superstar cousin, Karen Gillan (35 years). 

Arguably, 28-year old Eloise Smith of Cyn fame could also be a good fit, were she to dye her hair, as well as Liason’s Olivia Popica (29 years), and Apostasy’s Molly Wright (27 years). 

Speaking on the images, Hearts Land said: “One of the most exciting applications of AI at the moment is to imagine what producers and casting directors are imagining or looking for when casting popular characters – particularly for shows where it’s really all up in the air. 

“It’s fascinating that AI is able to create a realistic image of someone based on such little information – and it’s particularly exciting that this bears such a close resemblance to frontrunner Aaron Taylor-Johnson. It’ll be amazing if he actually lands the role now!”

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davepickering

Edinburgh reporter and photographer