Films that shaped Aaron Taylor-Johnson to be the next James Bond
The rumour mill went into overdrive last week when a major clue suggested that British heart-throb Aaron Taylor-Johnson has signed on to be the next James Bond.
Many names have been thrown in the mix as to who will take over the iconic 007 gig from Daniel Craig. From Idris Alba to Regé-Jean Page to Theo James and Henry Cavill, it's been quite the guessing game in Hollywood.
But the biggest clue came last week when Taylor-Johnson was announced as an ambassador for Omega – the brand of watch that the sexy secret agent has been wearing in every film since Golden Eye in 1995.
Taylor-Johnson, 34, join the luxe label's roster of global ambassadors, with the latest promotional campaign showing the Kick-Ass and Avengers actor staring into a cabinet filled with the expensive wristwatches.
According to The Sun, the Marvel star was formally offered the role of the British spy last year – and it's easy to see why Taylor-Johnson is a cut above the rest. He's British, he's dapper and he's Kick-Ass.
Yep, the actor quite literally played the titular character in the 2010 film Kick-Ass and its 2013 sequel, Kick-Ass 2. So he's also got the spy moves down pat.
But before he goes all suave and secret agent on us, here are the films that quite possibly helped shape Taylor-Johnson to become the next James Bond – and they are all available to watch for free on streaming service Tubi.
All we can say is, Taylor-Johnson – who was recently labelled Britain's next leading man by Rolling Stone – has had quite the glow-up…
Kick-Ass
In this 2010 action-comedy, Taylor-Johnson plays high school geek Dave Lizewski who reinvents himself as the superhero Kick-Ass.
He has zero powers, but confidence is everything. And by wearing his green and yellow mask, he goes from ordinary to extraordinary as he fights crime with his trusty batons.
He may need to ditch them for an Aston Martin and sleek gadgets as 007, but Taylor-Johnson will find his Kick-Ass training will come in handy should he be faced with some villains and henchmen in the James Bond films.
Dummy
He was a reluctant hero in the 2008 tear-jerker Dummy, but Taylor-Johnson got to hone his craft.
Here, the actor showed off his acting range to play Danny, an aspiring DJ who assumes a parental role in his younger brother Jack's life when their mother suddenly dies.
The brothers take different approaches to dealing with her death – Danny takes the destructive route plotted with sex, drugs and music, and Jack (played by Thomas Grant) adopts a more unconventional method by finding a mannequin and dressing it up like their mother.
As they learn to come to terms with their mum's death, Taylor-Johnson is superb as he navigates a rollercoaster of emotions in the film.
The Magic Door
Before he was a superhero in Kick-Ass and a sensitive soul on Dummy, Taylor-Johnson played make believe in the fantasy-adventure film The Magic Door.
In this tale that's part Power Rangers, part Hansel and Gretel, the fresh-faced actor plays an elf named Flip who goes on an adventure with two runaway siblings.
The trio encounter a troll named Raglin who is trying to find the magic door that will take him back home to Fairyland. But the path is no yellow brick road once they encounter Raglin's bitter enemy, the Black Witch.
A troll, an evil witch and a frosty face-off, it sounds like the fairytale version of James Bond, if you ask us.
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