S Poddar
Ben Whishaw has hinted that his days as Q in the James Bond series are numbered, given that the franchise will have had an entirely new cast.
He played Q, the head of research and development for the fictional British Secret Service, in the 2012 Skyfall. This was his first outing opposite Daniel Craig’s 007, which he followed with Spectre in 2015 and No Time to Die in 2021-Craig’s last outing as the world’s greatest spy.
Whishaw voiced skepticism recently while appearing on the BBC broadcast Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg saying, “I don’t think I’m going to be in the next one,” he told, “I think they’re going to start all over again, and with a new cast, a completely new cast. That’s my hunch, but I don’t know. I have no idea.”
Fans are abuzz with speculation about who will play James Bond next, and several names have been bandied about as possibilities. Aaron Taylor-Johnson is reportedly a big favorite for the role, although he hasn’t been above stamping on tales lately after his name cropped up in the media more than once. Other notable actors reportedly in the running include The Witcher’s Henry Cavill, Snowfall star Damson Idris, Oppenheimer actor Cillian Murphy and Luther star Idris Elba.
However, despite his vagueness about his future with the franchise, he never left himself out of it. “I’d do it if they asked me,” he said. “But I think it might need a kind of new lease of life and a whole new group of people. I think it could be good for it, but if they asked me, I would do it, of course.”
With Daniel Craig at the helm for the last nine years, EON productions has been in charge of this iconic franchise since Bond’s inception. And with his departure, it is only natural to expect significant changes within the production team, possibly also involving fresh faces in the roles. However, so far, no statement has been made about who will replace the world’s most renowned secret agent.
Meanwhile, Ben Whishaw has not been resting idle. He is set to appear in a stage production of Samuel Beckett’s classic Waiting for Godot alongside actor Lucian Msamati, who has featured in the series Gangs of London. The play, as with many of its absurdist and philosophic tendencies, has left its mark on Whishaw, describing it as having had a “profound influence” on him, much in what it influenced about his outlook on life and career.
Reflecting on the importance of the play, Whishaw shared that Waiting for Godot resonated so much because of the existential questions that the play raises. “I think that young people have all these questions and there’s so much that feels incredibly frightening about the world in a very raw way when you’re young, and there’s something this play goes right into about those things unashamedly,” he said.
Yet, Whishaw said the play also feels hopeful. “Although it’s a play that’s quite bleak, there’s something just in… giving those things space, it feels strangely hopeful also,” he noted.
That the franchise of Bond is now preparing for the future makes it not a bad reason to say that the reins Ben Whishaw took over the role are indeed hard to ignore and have certainly left an indelible mark on the course of the future. His Q is a character addition that has been welcomed with a great deal of wit, intelligence, and charm, which brings the character into a postmodern sensibility that these set of audiences -the new generation-are exposed to. Whether or not he will return in future films, the given legacy is secure and well-established in the world of Bond.
For now, Whishaw, and the fans, will have to speculate what the future holds for this legendary franchise. Or are they? With rumors floating around and no casting announcements up till now, this new James Bond era stays a mystery enveloped in secrecy. But one thing is sure: whatever way this franchise goes, it will surely continue to capture the eyes and ears of the world combined with action, intrigue, and time-honored espionage.
