- Taron Egerton told The Telegraph he doesn't believe he's the right actor to portray James Bond.
- Egerton said he doesn't have Bond's "statuesque" physique and struggles with his weight.
Despite being rumored to potentially play James Bond, Taron Egerton doesn't think he's physically right for the iconic part.
"I don't think I'm the right choice for it," Egerton said in an interview with The Telegraph published Saturday. "You have to be consistently statuesque to be that guy. And that's something that I am still striving for. I've always struggled with my weight."
In the interview, Egerton said that portraying Bond "is a bit like being a brand ambassador as well as being an actor. And that could be really fun in microcosm, but I'm sure I read that Barbara Broccoli said that it's a 15-year commitment."
Barbara Broccoli, along with her half-brother Michael G. Wilson, produce the Bond franchise.
Broccoli has been outspoken in the past about casting choices for the Bond film series, and once said she doesn't foresee a woman playing James Bond in the future.
"He can be of any color, but he is male," Broccoli told Variety in 2020. "I believe we should be creating new characters for women — strong female characters. I'm not particularly interested in taking a male character and having a woman play it. I think women are far more interesting than that."
"It's sort of irrelevant how I feel about it, anyway, because I can tell you there have been zero phone calls," Egerton said.
This is not the first time Egerton has shot down rumors he would take on the part of 007.
Earlier this month, Egerton told Total Film magazine that although he was never involved in conversations about portraying Bond, he would "be a very willing audience member."
The next actor who plays Bond will take over from Daniel Craig who exited the franchise after 2021's "No Time to Die."
Fans of the franchise have suggested that actor Idris Elba take over the role, but Elba isn't as keen.
"I don't think that playing Bond will satisfy some of my personal goals," Elba said on a September 2022 episode of HBO's "The Shop." "It will definitely satisfy the will of a nation, I'm not going to lie. Every corner of the world I go...they always go, 'Bond.' And I feel it is beyond me at this juncture."
Egerton is currently promoting his new Apple TV+ film "Tetris."
The film, set in the 1980s and based on a true story, follows businessman Henk Rogers (Egerton) as he travels to the Soviet Union to work with the creator of Tetris, Alexey Pajitnov (Nikita Efremov), to make the video game a worldwide sensation.
"Tetris" will be released on Apple TV+ on March 31.