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Theo James has thrown a surprise name into the mix as speculation over who will become the next James Bond continues to heat up.

The Gentlemen star previously ruled himself out after being touted as an early favourite for the role, saying he is “definitely too old” to play 007.

Asked who he thinks should get the coveted role, he told Extra: “Anya Taylor-Joy. I actually remember watching The Queen’s Gambit and thinking she would be a great Bond, Jane Bond.”

Set during the Cold War era, The Queen’s Gambit follows orphaned chess prodigy Beth Harmon (Taylor-Joy) as she struggles with addiction in a quest to become the world’s greatest chess player.

41-year-old James previously said he didn’t think the public scrutiny that comes with being James Bond would be “worth it”.

He told GQ magazine: “Imagine, suddenly, you and I cannot walk down the street. What that does to your children, who are trying to find themselves in the midst of hyper-scrutiny and fame. None of that, to me, is worth it.

“At the time, it’s very intoxicating, being offered some huge, sexy part that would change your life forever. But it really wouldn’t ultimately be worth it.”

He added that playing Bond would be “an example of a place you could never come back from.”

Rumours have suggested Bond producers had narrowed the shortlist of actors to three hopefuls — Callum Turner, Jack Lowden and Josh O’Connor.

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However, it has since been reported that Hollywood actors Robert Pattinson and Nicholas Hoult — who have starred as Batman and Lex Luthor respectively for DC Studios — have both auditioned for the role of James Bond.

Hoult and Pattinson would be intriguing choices for the role, considering their A-list status and existing fame at this point in their respective careers, which might only be rivalled by Roger Moore, who was widely known for his role in TV series The Saint.

Pattinson will next star in Dune: Part 3, which is directed by forthcoming Bond filmmaker Denis Villeneuve, who has been sitting in on the screen tests. The Independent has contacted Amazon Studios for comment.

Last week, Lowden addressed the persistent rumours he would be the next Bond, calling them “flattering”.

“It’s nice to be mentioned – for any role – and I’m just not really going to add to the noise,” he told GQ, adding: “I don’t really listen to it.”

Lowden, who’ll next play Mr Darcy in Netflix’s Pride and Prejudice series, continued: “As a young male actor, generally, the minute you’re not playing a zany artist type, the minute you’re in a suit, people fling it at you.”

Meanwhile, O’Connor said “to be considered in that same sort of bracket is extraordinary”, telling The Hollywood Reporter that reading the reports had been “such an incredibly bizarre pinch me moment”.

“Even being uttered in that same sentence and being considered for something like that,” he continued.

Speaking to The Independent earlier this year about the process, retired casting director Debbie McWilliams – who helped put Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan and Daniel Craig in Bond’s shoes over the years – said that “it is absolutely essential that [Bond] retains a total enigma,” adding: “We want to know as little about them personally as possible, because that’s what spies are.

“We don’t need to know where he goes shopping or who his parents are, or where he lives … He’s licensed to kill, and we have to believe that he can do that. If you don’t, then you’ve lost the audience.”

The new Bond film, to be directed by Villeneuve, follows Craig’s final outing as Bond in No Time To Die, which was released in October 2021 after being delayed by the pandemic.