With speculation running rampant about the identity of the next James Bond, one name has been whispered louder than others in Hollywood circles this week.
Step forward Lauren Sanchez.
No, the 56-year-old wife of Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos is not about to make her silver screen debut as a gender-swapped 007. Rather, the rumor is that Sanchez has been given free rein to choose the actor hunk who will replace Daniel Craig in the iconic role.
That claim was made by showbiz journalist Rob Shuter, who wrote on his substack on Tuesday that Mrs Bezos is now the ‘quiet boss hovering over the Bond universe’ following her husband’s acquisition of MGM Studios in 2022.
At the newly minted Amazon MGM Studios, Shuter wrote, ‘it is Lauren’s call now. If she’s not feeling you, it’s done.’
However, the full truth has now been revealed to the Daily Mail, with impeccably placed insiders dismissing the notion of Sanchez’s inclusion in the Bond selection process as a La La Land fantasy.
With speculation running rampant about the identity of the next James Bond, one name has been whispered louder than others in Hollywood circles this week
‘No, she’s not picking the next James Bond. And no, she’s not going to be a Bond girl either — except maybe for Halloween,’ an insider said.
Shuter, who previously claimed that Bezos wants his buxom wife to be the next Bond girl, had also alleged that Sanchez ‘has a very specific vision’ for the legendary character, adding that Wuthering Heights heartthrob Jacob Elordi ‘isn’t it.’
Sanchez envisions a Bond that is ‘polished, charming, globally appealing… not someone who looks like he’s carrying emotional luggage,’ Shuter claimed.
Elordi, 28, has recently been thought of as something of a frontrunner for the role.
The Daily Mail has contacted representatives for Sanchez for comment.
While Sanchez — who is no stranger to TV as a former Emmy-winning news anchor — is not involved with any Amazon MGM Studios projects, she was notably prominent in her support for Bezos during the global press tour for his passion project, new Lord of the Rings spin-off series, The Rings of Power.
Join the debate
Should Hollywood power players have any say in who becomes the next James Bond?
Rumors have been circulating that Sanchez, who is married to Amazon boss Jeff Bezos, 62, will pick the next 007 hunk
However, an insider told Daily Mail: ‘No, she’s not picking the next James Bond. And no, she’s not going to be a Bond girl’
Journalist Rob Shuter alleged that Sanchez ‘has a very specific vision’ for the character, and that Wuthering Heights heartthrob Jacob Elordi ‘isn’t it’
And it appears Sanchez does harbor some cinematic aspirations. In 2024, she quietly scrapped a self-funded $2 million feature-length movie project. The shelved film, titled ‘The Golden Door’, had been billed as a psychological thriller.
The hyper-focus in Hollywood on the next Bond casting comes after Bezos officially took creative control over all MGM projects last year.
Following the departure of Daniel Craig, who appeared as Bond in five movies, the 007 films will no longer be produced by Barbara Broccoli and Michael G Wilson, the daughter and stepson of Albert ‘Cubby’ Broccoli who launched the British spy franchise in 1962.
Craig, 57, bowed out with No Time To Die in 2021, and since then a host of leading men have been suggested as replacements.
Mission Impossible star Tom Cruise, 63, has been a fan favorite, while British actors James McAvoy, 46, and Henry Cavill, 42, also being named.
Read the full article here
