Pierce Brosnan eyes Cillian Murphy as potential next James Bond

MANILA, Philippines — James Bond actor Pierce Brosnan expressed his opinion the next actor to carry the mantle of Agent 007 is fellow Irishman and the Oscar-nominated star of “Oppenheimer” Cillian Murphy.

Brosnan told the BBC while at the annual Oscar Wilde awards in Los Angeles celebrating Irish creative talent that Murphy was an ideal candidate for him.

“Cillian would do a magnificent job as James Bond on His Majesty’s Secret Service,” Brosnan said.

However elsewhere on the red carpet, the 47-year-old Murphy said he thinks he’s “a bit old” to play England’s most famous movie spy.

The Irish actor played Bond four times between 1995 and 2002 before he was succeeded by British actor Daniel Craig, who finished a 15-year run of five films in 2021 with “No Time to Die.”

Related: Why Tom Hanks wants Idris Elba as the next James Bond

Previous Bond actors include Scotsman Sean Connery, Australian George Lazenby, and British actors Roger Moore and Timothy Dalton.

Connery and another British star David Niven portrayed 007 in two separate films that were not produced by longtime Bond producers Eon.

Murphy joins a huge pool of actors eyed to become the next Bond including Henry Cavill, Idris Elba, Tom Hardy, Richard Madden, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Regé-Jean Page.

The “Oppenheimer” star is up for Best Actor at the upcoming 2024 Oscars, going against Bradley Cooper from “Maestro,” Colman Domingo from “Rustin,” Paul Giamatti from “The Holdovers,” and Jeffrey Wright from “American Fiction.”

Other awards “Oppenheimer” are contending for are Best Picture, Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay for Christopher Nolan, and Best Supporting Actor for Robert Downey Jr.

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