Speaking to RadioTimes.com<\/a> as part of our Bond at 70<\/strong> season, McWilliams claimed that most of the casting rumours make her \u201cdie laughing\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t listen to any of it,\u201d she said. \u201cIt makes me die laughing, actually, most of the time.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWhen I hear about who the bookies\u2019 favourites are, and who\u2019s number 15 and all this kind of thing\u2026 I mean, it\u2019s just hilarious \u2013 and the fact that people are remotely interested is even funnier, I think. It\u2019s a curious phenomenon, is all I can say!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n McWilliams has worked as casting director on the Bond films since 1981\u2019s For Your Eyes Only<\/a> and was instrumental in the casting of Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan and most recently Daniel Craig as 007.<\/p> Reflecting on previous Bond castings, she suggested that the conversation and speculation around who\u2019ll play Ian Fleming\u2019s super spy next have amplified over the years.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s become a bigger deal through modern press and social media and all that business, and the fact that there now seems to be these kind of fanbases that I didn\u2019t even know existed, really \u2013 but that seems to generate a lot more [discussion].<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cAnd also, I have a theory, which I\u2019ve trotted out many times, is that when there\u2019s a gap in a newspaper, they fill it with a James Bond story, because they haven\u2019t got anything else to write about. Why people can\u2019t just wait and see, I don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n As for who\u2019ll replace Craig after the actor bowed out of the franchise with 2021\u2019s No Time to Die<\/a>, McWilliams insisted that the search is yet to begin in earnest. \u201cThere\u2019s no conversation being had at the moment.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201c[Series producer] Barbara Broccoli has been heavily involved in other projects. You know, it\u2019s not unusual for there to be quite a big gap between different Bonds, it has been known to have a five-year gap. So, no, nothing.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Actors linked to Bond in the press have included Bridgerton<\/a>\u2018s Reg\u00e9-Jean Page, Henry Cavill, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Idris Elba, Slow Horses<\/a> star Jack Lowden<\/a>, Tom Hardy, and James Norton.<\/p> ![\"""\"](\""https:\/\/images.immediate.co.uk\/production\/volatile\/sites\/3\/2021\/10\/next-james-bond-f24e609.jpg?quality=90&resize=619%2C413"\" "\\"\"\"\\"\/")
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