While a lot of focus has been put on the possible list of actors who could take on the role of James Bond in the latest iteration of the action franchise, it looks like a big Hollywood name has emerged as a new favorite to take on an antagonistic role opposite whoever slips into the stylish suit of the super spy.

Over the years, Bond villains have come in many shapes and sizes, but the vast majority of them have been nothing if not memorable. Some of the greatest actors of several generations have played the bad guy in Bond movies, from Christopher Lee and Donald Pleasance, through Richard Keel, Christopher Walken, and Sean Bean, to Christoph Waltz and Javier Bardem during Daniel Craig’s era. Now, it looks like a renowned Irish actor with an incredible resume, and a recent Oscar win under his belt, is taking the lead in recent betting odds.

Cillian Murphy has been part of some of the greatest movies of the last two decades. From his role as Jonathan Crane/Scarecrow in Batman Begins, to his incredible turn as Robert J. Oppenheimer in Christopher Nolan’s epic biography, Murphy has carved himself an impressive place in Hollywood, and a villain role in Amazon’s new Bond era could be just the role he is looking for.

While many people have been placing their bets on which actor will be taking over the role of James Bond himself, with several actors such as Aaron Taylor Johnson, Henry Cavill, and The White Lotus’ Theo James all doing the rounds, according to OLBG’s odds, Murphy is the 9/2 favorite to make the new James Bond work hard to save the day.

At one point, 49-year-old Murphy was in the running to play the role of Bond, but ruled himself out in several interviews, saying he was “too old” to play the lead. However, that would not necessarily be the case if he were to appear in a one-and-done villain role, and leaves things wide open for him to accept a role in the next Bond movie if he chooses to.

While Murphy has previously spoken about wanting to play more villains, he currently has two movie projects coming up where he doesn’t play anything of the story. One of those is his return to the role of Tommy Shelby in the film continuation of British drama Peaky Blinders, and he will also return to the 28 Days Later franchise in 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple. As a man in demand, it is obvious that adding a James Bond movie role to his slate would need a certain amount of consideration, but the real question is, would it be an offer he feels he could really turn down? Only time will tell, but he faces some tough competition from other popular choices such as Paul Giamatti and David Dastmalchian.

Source: OLBG