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The Sun
28-05-2025
- Business
- The Sun
New Brit star takes the lead in race to be James Bond as flurry of bets are placed on him after 007 ‘clue'
race is on There's another Brit hunk hot on his heels A NEW Brit star has taken the lead in the race to become the next James Bond after a huge 007 'clue'. Speculation over who will replace Daniel Craig in the iconic role has been heating up, and bookies have slashed odds on one actor following a flurry of bets. 3 3 3 Aaron Taylor-Johnson has been backed to step into 007's shoes by a surge of bets this week. Coral 's John Hill said: 'Aaron Taylor-Johnson has jumped to the top of our next James Bond betting following a surge of bets behind him in the last 24 hours. 'The British actor has been linked to the role in the past, but this is the biggest wave of interest we have seen behind him since we opened betting on Daniel Craig's replacement.' Last week Aaron, 34, fuelled rumours he's bagged the role after signing a deal with Omega - the brand of watch the 007 spy wears. Omega has been supplying timepieces to the iconic literary and movie character since the release of 1995 flick, Golden Eye. The Sun told last year how Aaron had been offered the job - with insiders saying at the time Eon Productions were keen to snap him up. A source said: ' Bond is Aaron's job, should he wish to accept it. 'The formal offer is on the table and they are waiting to hear back. 'As far as Eon is concerned, Aaron is going to sign his contract in the coming days and they can start preparing for the big announcement.' But hot on Aaron's heels is fellow Brit hunk Theo James who - before Aaron's surge of bets - overtook former favourite Henry Cavill earlier this month. Speaking last week, Cal Gildart of Ladbrokes said: 'Henry Cavill's return to the head of the Bond betting didn't last long, with Theo James as short as anyone has been to pick up the world's most famous licence to kill.'
Man of Many
26-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Man of Many
OMEGA's New Ambassador Announcement Proves It Has a Golden Eye for Talent
By Nick Hall - News Published: 26 May 2025 Share Copy Link Readtime: 5 min Every product is carefully selected by our editors and experts. If you buy from a link, we may earn a commission. Learn more. For more information on how we test products, click here. Swiss watch brand OMEGA has confirmed actor Aaron Taylor-Johnson as its newest brand ambassador. as its newest brand ambassador. The announcement is fuelling speculation that Taylor-Johnson will soon be named as the next James Bond actor . . OMEGA has been the official watch partner of 007 since 1996's GoldenEye. Swiss luxury watch brand OMEGA has no shortage of celebrity fans and famous patrons. From Academy Award winner Eddie Redmayne to the ultra-sophisticated and debonair George Clooney, the maison's rolodex is a proverbial who's who of the Hollywood elite. However, despite dominating the wardrobes and wrists of A-list actors the world over, it seems the world is not enough. One name that continues to elude the Swiss watchmaker is that of British super-spy James Bond. Following the 2021 release of No Time to Die, the final film to feature Daniel Craig in the iconic role, the hunt for the next James Bond has dominated film circles and internet forums. Fan casts have tipped everyone from Idris Elba to Nicholas Galitzine for the much-coveted part. However, franchise owner Eon Productions, which sold the rights to Bond to Amazon earlier this year but still retains creative control over the next instalment, has remained tight-lipped over who is destined to take up the mantle. Long-time partner and official Bond watch producer OMEGA, on the other hand, may have just let the cat out of the bag. Aaron Taylor-Johnson with OMEGA President and CEO Raynald Aeschlimann | Image: OMEGA In a blockbuster announcement straight from its Biel headquarters, OMEGA confirmed British actor and current Bond frontrunner Aaron Taylor-Johnson as its newest brand ambassador. Ruggedly handsome, quick-witted and with an undeniable sense of screen presence, the 34-year-old rising star looks to be the perfect replacement for Daniel Craig. Now, he has the watch to back it up. 'I place significant value on relationships that are genuine and built on mutual passion and respect. With that, it's a tremendous honour to be selected as a brand ambassador,' Taylor-Johnson said in a statement confirming the partnership. 'My interest in watches first began with my dad, who introduced me to OMEGA, if you can believe it. He was working class and saved his earnings to purchase an OMEGA watch.' Daniel Craig wearing an OMEGA Seamaster Diver 300M in 'No Time to Die' (2021) | Image: MGM As fans of the Ian Fleming franchise will know, OMEGA has been the preferred timepiece of Bond since 1996. The Swiss watchmaker first appeared in the Pierce Brosnan-led hit GoldenEye and has been a staple in the series since then. Famously, Sean Connery's Bond were a Rolex Submariner Ref. 6538 from his own personal collection for the first few films in the series, followed by a string of unusual and eclectic timepieces that ranged from Gruen Precision 510 to a Seiko M354 Memory Bank Calendar, but for the past three decades, Bond has been staunchly brand-loyal. Both Brosnan and Craig-era Bonds favoured OMEGA Seamaster Diver 300M models, renowned for their robust case design, resistance to pressure and, much like 007 himself, hard-nosed good looks. The connection between the film franchise and the watchmaker has been a marketing masterstroke, not only spurring a number of special edition models, such as the 60 Years of Bond release from 2022 or the Platinum-Gold Seamaster from 2020, but also helping to bring the collection on par with its much-loved Speedmaster range. However, it's not the only tactic that OMEGA HQ has used to great effect. Daniel Craig wearing the Bronze Gold and Burgundy OMEGA Seamaster Diver 300M at 15th Annual Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science's Governors Awards in November 2024 | Image: Getty In recent years, the brand has become remarkably adept at guerrilla-marketing efforts, tapping outgoing Bond actor Daniel Craig for a string of well-orchestrated product leaks. Whilst attending the 2024 Paris Olympics, Craig was spotted wearing a mysterious, silver-toned OMEGA sans date window that many fans speculated was a then-unreleased prototype. Two months later, the Swiss luxury brand officially announced the Seamaster Diver 300M No-Date. It was a similar story in March 2024, when fans spied a never-before-seen Speedmaster on the Bond actor's wrist; a timepiece that would ultimately become the Speedmaster Moonwatch with Lacquered White Dial. With OMEGA no stranger to getting ahead of the news, the announcement of Aaron Taylor-Johnson as brand ambassador feels very much like a sign of things to come. 'Aaron is such a versatile actor, with a range that covers action, thriller, romance and much more,' OMEGA president and CEO Raynald Aeschlimann said. 'At OMEGA, we've always been impressed by that all-around quality, and his pioneering approach to so many roles. His passion for watches is also clear, so we're delighted to welcome him as a new ambassador and share the excitement of our latest creations.' Aaron Taylor-Johnson announced as OMEGA Brand Ambassador | Image: OMEGA Aaron Taylor-Johnson announced as OMEGA Brand Ambassador | Image: OMEGA Aaron Taylor-Johnson announced as OMEGA Brand Ambassador | Image: OMEGA In a post confirming the new ambassadorship, OMEGA published a series of images showing Taylor-Johnson exploring the renowned watchmaking facilities and heritage museum. Most importantly, the images depict him wearing a Speedmaster First OMEGA in Space on a brown leather strap, a timepiece that celebrates heritage, tradition, and new beginnings. While not the traditional Bond Seamaster 300, you could argue that the First OMEGA in Space model is a subtle reference to Bond's 1979 celestial escapade, Moonraker, but that may be reading a little too deep. While there is still no clear indication of who will slip into the British super-spy's crisp Saville Row suit, the latest news out of Switzerland bodes well for the future of the franchise. The 007 throne is crying out for a fresh new approach, one that is younger, bolder and built for longevity. Whether you like it or not, you can't help but acknowledge that Aaron Taylor-Johnson looks good in OMEGA.
The Guardian
28-02-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Licence to kill: could a James Bond horror emerge when book copyrights expire?
Amazon may have captured James Bond, paying billions to get creative control of the super spy, but a clock is now ticking that means 007 – or at least a version of him – could escape into the wider world in a decade's time. The character and plots of the original literary works by creator Ian Fleming become open for public use in most countries in 2035, raising the prospect of Bond starring in rival film and TV stories of espionage, comedy or even horror. Bond is one of a host of Hollywood heroes with looming or past copyright dates – including Winnie the Pooh and Mickey Mouse – prompting an ideas arms race between those looking to cash in on newly available global brands and rights holders creating spin-off intellectual property that remains protected. Since Sean Connery first appeared in Dr No in 1962, the 25 films in the 007 franchise have grossed more than $7bn globally. Getting hold of the fifth most valuable franchise of all time was a major motivation for Amazon's $8.5bn purchase of the Hollywood studio MGM, which jointly owned the rights alongside Eon Productions, in 2021, the year the last Bond film hit cinemas. Last week, Amazon shelled out a further $1bn-plus to wrest full control from Eon, in an effort to get 007 back on the big screen. It will need to move fast before Bond potentially faces his stiffest competition yet – himself. Under UK and European law, copyright to literary creations expires 70 years after the author's death, at the start of the subsequent year. Given Fleming died in 1964, having penned 12 Bond novels and two anthologies, Amazon has a short window of exclusivity. 'There is a real opportunity for interested parties to make use of the fact that the rights in the James Bond books will soon lapse,' says Chris Froud, a partner and patent attorney at the European IP firm Withers and Rogers. 'Companies can take advantage of this by reworking plots and characters and commercialising them for a second time.' However, any big-screen additions to the original books remain legally protected, such as the famous 007 gun-barrel logo, characters such as Jaws, flirtatious banter with Moneypenny and clever remarks when the super spy makes a narrow escape or sees off a henchman. From 1 January 2035, those bold enough to look to exploit 'book Bond' would still be able to use the character and famous traits such as his 'The name's Bond, James Bond' motto, driving an Aston Martin, and ordering his martinis 'shaken, not stirred'. But care would need to be taken not to have Bond drink Bollinger – 007's go-to champagne in the films – as Fleming's paper spy was a Taittinger man. While Bond's boss M is also a staple of the books, it is debatable whether any would-be 007 copycat creation could show Q as a gadget supremo. And any depiction of Bond's arguably most famous adversary in the film franchise, Blofeld, would have to see the super-villain appear with hair – and without signature white cat – as he was originally presented in the novels. 'Companies will need to be cautious in how they go about exploiting Bond,' says Froud. 'The James Bond films are so well known and embedded in popular psyche it would be difficult to separate this knowledge from any new works that creative companies might wish to develop based on the content of the books alone. Any mistakes could attract copyright infringement claims from the owners of the films.' Recent examples of the exploitation of the copyright of globally known characters suggest there are those who are willing to take such risks. When the Disney-controlled rights to AA Milne's much-loved Winnie the Pooh entered the public domain on 1 January 2022, the Hollywood star Ryan Reynolds appeared a day later in a US parody ad featuring 'Winnie-the-Screwed' – a bear who finds he has been overpaying for his phone bill. In March 2023 a UK-based production company, Jagged Edge, felt emboldened enough to release the controversial horror film Winnie The Pooh: Blood and Honey. Shot over just five days, the story features Pooh and Piglet going on a murderous rampage after being abandoned by Christopher Robin. The successful release – it made almost $8m on a budget of £20,000 – has spawned the so-called Twisted Childhood Universe, also known as the Poohniverse, to create slasher horror films based on well-known characters whose copyrights have expired. The slate of releases and upcoming films includes two Blood and Honey sequels, Peter Pan's Neverland Nightmare, Bambi: The Reckoning and Pinocchio: Unstrung, and will culminate with an Avengers-style ensemble called Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble, coming out next year. Scott Jeffrey, the producer of the films and Jagged Edge's founder, says he has never faced a legal challenge from Disney and would love to add Bond to his list of horror makeovers in the future. 'When the first film blew up we worried if we had done it by the book, and luckily we had,' he says. 'But we did a horror version to keep it as far removed as possible, we wouldn't have gone near doing a kids' film. Bond can join the queue. Flipping James Bond on his head would be so interesting, doing something different, twisted – making him the villain.' Even Walt Disney's most famous creation, Mickey Mouse, has not been spared. On 1 January last year the copyright to Steamboat Willie, Mickey's earliest persona from the 1928 movie of the same name, expired. Months later the horror film The Mouse Trap was released, while Screamboat – about a late-night boat ride in New York that becomes a struggle for survival when a 'seemingly harmless mouse transforms into a dangerous monster' – is due to premiere this April. The producers repurposing Winnie and Mickey did so on the basis of American law, which protects intellectual property in the US for 95 years from the year of publication. Pooh was technically still under UK copyright for a few more years, but Jagged Edge struck a deal to allow the release. The legal difference means Amazon's Bond trademark is safe in the US for decades to come. Fleming's copyrights will not start entering the public domain there until about 2048, given his first book, Casino Royale, was published in 1953. However, Hollywood has its own mega-franchise expirations looming, with the biggest in the next decade belonging to Warner Bros and DC Studios. Control of Superman and Lois Lane are set to end in 2034, Batman in 2035, the Joker in 2036 and Wonder Woman in 2037. Once again wannabe exploiters will have to at first stick to the original versions of the characters, which means no film additions such as the sidekick Robin and Kryptonite, and Superman only being able to leap great bounds, not fly. Hollywood has been preparing for the cliff edge with innovations – such as introducing characters from The Authority, a comic series that only launched in 1999, in the upcoming new Superman film. 'I want Batman so bad,' says Jeffrey. 'It is something I feel you could do a lot with. And Superman … I wish the bigger companies, the people with proper money, were doing a horror spin-off of their own characters, it would be interesting. You see the same types of films made over and over and it is boring.' Amazon, Eon Productions and Ian Fleming Publications were approached for comment.
Yahoo
22-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Every actor who has played James Bond, ranked from worst to best
James Bond is entering a new era as Amazon MGM has taken creative control over the franchise. The franchise has been in limbo since Daniel Craig's last outing as Bond in 2021's "No Time To Die." Below, Business Insider has ranked all seven actors who have portrayed Bond in film. Over 60 years and 25 movies, seven actors have played the legendary spy James Bond on-screen over the past 60 years. Daniel Craig was the latest to take on the character created by novelist Ian Fleming, bringing a darker, grittier tone to the franchise. His run came to an end in 2021's "No Time To Die," when his Bond, well, died. Fans of the movies, which have made $6.4 billion worldwide, have been waiting patiently for a new actor to take on the role after Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli, the longtime producers of the franchise, promised that would make more. But on Thursday, Amazon MGM studios announced it was taking creative control over the franchise, and will cast a new Bond and develop new films. Before we get a new 007, here's how the former actors weigh up against each other. David Niven (1967 - 1967) While most audiences will automatically think of Daniel Craig when thinking of "Casino Royale," there was actually another version of the story that arrived on the big screen back in 1967. (Yes, in the same year as Sean Connery's "You Only Live Twice.") Columbia Pictures' "Casino Royale" starred David Niven as James Bond, and it takes a much more comedic approach to Ian Fleming's book of the same name. The parody movie isn't connected to any of the other films, nor was it made by Eon Productions and Albert Broccoli. It was only made because Fleming sold the singular rights to the book before it was published in 1953. Niven's Bond is a much older agent, who's brought out of retirement to fight a nefarious organization called S.M.E.R.S.H. The Oscar-winning actor might bring some charm to the role, but the absurd story — which ends with him going to heaven — ruins the character and sucks all the suave coolness out of 007 completely. George Lazenby (1969-1969) The Australian actor George Lazenby is on this list as another matter of courtesy. He portrayed Bond once in 1969's "On Her Majesty's Secret Service." He was drafted in by Eon Productions — the film's producers — after Sean Connery decided to step away. And he was promptly replaced by Roger Moore when the series resumed in 1973 with "Live and Let Die." Pierce Brosnan (1995-2002) After 15 years of Daniel Craig — who is eulogized later in this list — it is easy to forget the damage Pierce Brosnan did to the James Bond franchise, but it is important to revisit our lowest moments so we can grow. So here, I humbly ask, do we remember the unfortunate orange spray tan Brosnan sported throughout his time as 007? Or the awkward hyperpop theme songs such as Madonna's awful "Die Another Day." Brosnan's films even have bad guns. It is important to note that "GoldenEye" — Brosnan's first Bond film — was also the first film in the franchise not produced by Albert R. Broccoli, the film series originator, who had been succeeded by his daughter, Barbara Broccoli, along with his stepson, Michael G. Wilson. But it has been reported that Brosnan was favored by Albert Broccoli, so maybe it was time for him to step down. Nonetheless, across his four-film run, Brosnan pushed Bond away from its steely, cool origins to something more Hollywood and less interesting. Roger Moore (1973-1985) Roger Moore suited up as James Bond a record seven times, and the bulk of his films were directed by the British director John Glen who had an unparalleled skill for capturing pure chaos on screen. And that is what Moore's Bond was best known for. In his seven-film run, Moore went to space, fought off a pack of crocodiles, and defused a nuclear bomb. And while Moore's Bond was charismatic and entertaining, there was rarely any substance to what he said, and there was even less plot to hold together all the big-budget stunts. And for this reason, Moore's seven films don't make for great rewatching. Timothy Dalton (1987-1989) The sole reason Timothy Dalton is not at the top of this list is that he portrayed Bond only twice, but this wasn't due to bad ratings or box-office numbers. His films "The Living Daylights" (1987) and "Licence to Kill" (1989) are two of the most beloved Bond films and Dalton's dark and often serious take on 007 is widely considered the most accurate interpretation of Ian Fleming's books. "I wanted to make him human," Dalton said of his interpretation of Bond during an interview in 2008. "He's not a superman; you can't identify with a superman. You can identify with the James Bond of the books. He's a tarnished man, really. I wanted to capture that occasional sense of vulnerability and I wanted to capture the spirit of Ian Fleming." As many people have stated before, Dalton's grounding of Bond paved the way for the franchise's most profitable period of releases with Daniel Craig's 007. Dalton's tenure, however, was cut short due to complex legal wrangling between the film's producers MGM and Eon Productions, which halted production until 1994, when his contract expired. Sean Connery (1962-1967) Sean Connery had a legendary acting career that spanned over 50 movies and included appearances in some of Hollywood's most iconic movies such as 1964's "Marnie," 1989's "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade," and 1987's "The Untouchables," for which he won a Best Supporting Actor Academy Award. But when he died last year, he was best remembered as the first 007. According to Connery, however, his interpretation of 007 managed to charm everyone but Fleming. "I never got introduced to Fleming until I was well into the movie, but I know he was not happy with me as the choice," he said on "The South Bank Show" in 2008. Despite Fleming's reservations, Connery played the secret agent in seven films from 1962 to 1983, and his version is remembered as not only the coolest in the franchise but one of the coolest characters in cinematic history. Connery's powers as 007 came from his own charisma. As Barbara Walters best described in a 1987 interview, the Scotsman was someone who didn't try to be sexy; he simply oozed class. Connery can also claim to be the only Bond actor who actually managed to pull off the famous catchphrase, "Martini, shaken, not stirred" and make it sound cool. Best: Daniel Craig (2006-2021) Daniel Craig's Bond films are dark and physical and entertaining. But it is Craig's commercial success that has landed him atop this list. The numbers simply don't lie: 2012's "Skyfall," Craig's third outing as Bond, and first collaboration with the British director Sam Mendes ("American Beauty"), raked in $1.1 billion at the worldwide box office, making it the most commercially successful Bond film of all time. Craig's portrait of the top-secret British spy helped to revive the franchise, which, at the time, had been struggling to find a contemporary identity for 007 after Brosnan's thematically erratic series of films. Craig's last Bond film, "No Time To Die," hits US theaters on October 8. Early projections suggest the film could make a $90 million debut at the international box office, so by the end of his tenure, Craig might not just be the actor who saved the Bond franchise but also the actor who saved cinema. Ayomikun Adekaiyero contributed to this article. Read the original article on Business Insider
The Guardian
21-02-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
The Erinsborough asteroid attack! Now that Neighbours is doomed, it needs to end with a bang
It's always sad to write an obituary, especially so when it's for the second time. Neighbours, the Australian soap opera that made stars of everyone from Kylie Minogue to a man who will forever be known as Toadfish, is five months away from death. Again. Yesterday, the show announced that Amazon, the company that resuscitated Neighbours two years ago after its dramatic 2022 finale, would be bringing production to an end. In July, filming will cease. In December, the final episode will be shown. True, there is the possibility that another buyer will leap in and save it, but that is looking more and more unlikely. After all, as the saying goes, you can't make a zombie out of a zombie. Obviously, there's a lot to examine from the news. Perhaps the most important lesson is that legacy franchises should really think better of jumping into bed with big tech companies. Amazon proved this twice over yesterday alone; first by buying out Eon Productions, the British company that makes the James Bond films, hinting that it will transform a venerable 63-year-old property into a nightmarish Star Wars-style sausage factory of spin-offs and TV shows, and now this. When Amazon bought Neighbours, fans hoped it was a permanent solution, continuing the soap in perpetuity. But streamers operate on a different metric to traditional broadcasters – a long-running show with a loyal audience won't increase the number of subscribers as much as something buzzy and new – and so it has once again been snuffed out of existence. But hope springs eternal. Inevitably, someone has created a petition to save it. But even that barely has the energy to sustain itself, scraping together just over a thousand signatures in a day. Perhaps the time is right to let it go. After all, the entire history of the show has been spent teetering on the brink of cancellation. In Australia, the Seven Network cancelled it after four months before it was revived by Network Ten. It ran for 22 years on BBC One in the UK, until the channel abandoned it in 2008 after Freemantle demanded £300 million for the rights. It was saved when Channel 5 agreed to show it, paying for the bulk of production costs in the process. But even that started to go south over financial disputes in 2017, before Channel 5 officially pulled the plug in 2022, tanking the show for the first time. You will remember that because the finale was a big deal. Several big stars who had outgrown Neighbours returned to mark the event, including Margot Robbie, Guy Pearce, Jason Donovan and a bizarrely mute Kylie Minogue. In truth it was a pretty good finale, ending with a wedding that served as a celebration of the history of Ramsay Street. If you're old enough to have enjoyed Neighbours at its peak, it was a near-perfect send off. And then it was all undone the moment that Amazon bought the rights. The new series has been, well, fine. It's Neighbours, so it's still equal parts plodding and implausible, but after using up all that energy saying goodbye to it once, it was hard to fully embrace its new incarnation. What was once a communal experience – play Suddenly by Angry Anderson, the soundtrack to Scott and Charlene's wedding in 1987, to a roomful of people in their mid-40s and they'll all end up snivelling with nostalgia – had become impossibly fragmented. At times it felt like you were the only person in the world watching Neighbours. Now there's nowhere else to go. It seems like Neighbours has run out of road for good. Hopefully, this time it will do the dignified thing and stay dead. If nothing else, a new ending means that it will soon be time for a new finale. This is something to be excited about, at least. After all, the show has blown the chance of another celebrity-filled nostalgiafest because Kylie Minogue clearly isn't going to risk her reputation by showing up to say goodbye again. So that only leaves the route of harrowing finality. This is Neighbours' chance to go big or go home. Nothing short of total destruction will do. We're talking plane crashes, volcanoes, axe murderers. By the time the end credits roll, I want the few remaining viewers permanently traumatised. We cannot risk the possibility of another embarrassing about-face here. If someone wants to make a petition to destroy Erinsborough with an asteroid attack, I promise to sign it first.
