James Bond

BBC ONE West and 5 reported that the search for the next James Bond was moving toward its final stages. BBC ONE West said final screen tests were reported for that weekend, with between three and five actors thought to be auditioning, possibly starting as early as the day of its bulletin. It said it had not been able to confirm the reports, which it attributed to film industry publications including Variety and The Hollywood Reporter. 5 said screen tests might be taking place around the time of its bulletin and could continue into the following week, and that an official announcement could come soon. Both channels named Callum Turner, Josh O'Connor and Jack Lowden as reported contenders. BBC ONE West reported that producer Amy Pascal had said an announcement by the end of the year would be a good bet. 5 mentioned an apparent fourth, unknown newcomer among the candidates. 5 also said Amazon MGM was taking over the franchise, Daniel Craig was no longer in the role, Denis Villeneuve was director and Steven Knight was writing the new film. It noted speculation that Dua Lipa could perform a theme song and that Saoirse Ronan could be a Bond girl, while BBC ONE West also noted the Dua Lipa theme speculation. No confirmed casting choice was announced by either channel.

Key Claims by Channel

Claim
Widely reported · 3 or more of 4 channels
Final auditions for the next James Bond are reportedly taking place this weekend, with between three and five actors thought to be in contention.		Reported by BBC News
Callum Turner is reported to be among the actors in the running to replace Daniel Craig as James Bond.		Not reported by BBC News
Reported by a few · 2 channels
An official announcement about the next James Bond was reported to be expected soon, with producer Amy Pascal suggesting the end of the year was a good bet.	Reported by Channel 5	Not reported by BBC News	Reported by BBC One	Not reported by GB News
Dua Lipa was speculated as a possible performer of the next James Bond theme song.	Reported by Channel 5	Not reported by BBC News	Reported by BBC One	Not reported by GB News
Only on one channel
BBC ONE West said it could not confirm the casting reports and attributed them to film industry publications including Variety and The Hollywood Reporter.	Not reported by Channel 5	Not reported by BBC News	Reported by BBC One	Not reported by GB News
Amazon MGM was reported to be taking over the James Bond franchise, with Daniel Craig no longer in the role and a new Bond cast for the first time in 20 years.	Reported by Channel 5	Not reported by BBC News	Not reported by BBC One	Not reported by GB News
Denis Villeneuve was reported as the director of the new James Bond film.		Not reported by BBC News	Not reported by BBC One	Not reported by GB News
Steven Knight was reported to be writing the new James Bond film.	Reported by Channel 5	Not reported by BBC News	Not reported by BBC One	Not reported by GB News
Saoirse Ronan was speculated as a possible Bond girl in the next James Bond film.	Reported by Channel 5	Not reported by BBC News	Not reported by BBC One	Not reported by GB News
Stephen Graham was speculated as a possible villain if Steven Knight brought him into the film.	Reported by Channel 5	Not reported by BBC News	Not reported by BBC One	Not reported by GB News
A Channel 5 entertainment journalist suggested that Bond producers might cast an unknown actor because the role creates megastars.	Reported by Channel 5	Not reported by BBC News	Not reported by BBC One	Not reported by GB News

This is a cross-channel consensus summary, not an objective account. Consensus can be uniformly wrong, or omit what only one channel covered.