Following Amazon taking over creative control of the James Bond franchise, Pierce Brosnan has called for 007 to continue to be played by British actors.
In the film series that began all the way back in 1962 with Sean Connery's Dr No, the spy has been played by English actors, the only exceptions being the Australian George Lazenby and Brosnan himself, who is Irish.
There is plenty of speculation and concern about where the American mega-corporation will take the franchise now. In an interview with The Telegraph, Brosnan agreed with the publication's assessment that Daniel Craig's successor should be British, or at least not an American, stating: "It's a given."
Related: Best film and TV tours for 2025
"In this world that is moving so fast now, at the speed of light, [the takeover] does come with a certain lament," he said.
"I thought it was coming for some time I guess, but I think it was the right decision for Barbara [Broccoli] and Michael [G Wilson]," he added.
What to Read Next
"It takes great courage for them to let go. They will still have a say in matters. I hope that [Amazon] handles the work and the character with dignity and imagination and respect."
Related: Why every James Bond actor quit
Last year, Brosnan shared his belief that Aaron Taylor-Johnson — one of the apparent frontrunners for the role — would make a great next Bond, while Daniel Craig said he doesn't care who picks up the mantle.
Recently, a representative for Amazon said that a theme hasn't been decided yet, and no script has been written. They also stressed that AI won't be used in writing James Bond films "any time soon".
The Bond films can be bought physically or digitally from various retailers.
Joe Anderton is a freelance news writer at Digital Spy, having worked there since 2016. In his time, he's covered a host of live events and interviewed celebrities big and small. A big fan of TV and movies both mainstream and obscure, Joe also enjoys video games and in particular PlayStation. Joe currently does not use Twitter, but he only ever used it to tell people to watch the film Help! I'm a Fish.
