Now pay close attention, 007. Here’s a golden question: Will Bond’s licence be renewed by the end of this year? In some interesting Bond news, Amy Pascal – the American film executive who is part of the two-person producing team overseeing Bond 26 – has told the respected U.S. movie industry news site Deadline that the next James Bond actor will likely be chosen by the end of 2026.
In some brief but intriguing comments, she said: ‘I would say the end of the year is a good bet. We are being really, really methodical. Having worked with Barbara Broccoli at the studio, I mean, Daniel Craig is a hard act to follow. And it’s got to be something really different that is stirring and exciting and different’.
As many Bond fans know, back in March, 2025, Amazon MGM Studios announced that Pascal and David Heyman would oversee the James Bond film franchise moving forward, and would produce future installments in the series through their Pascal Pictures and Heyday Films banners respectively. Moreover, as the JBIFC noted in a recent news item, the final week of June, 2026, brought the news that the U.S. film industry news site Deadline had ran an article entitled ‘James Bond Search Heats Up As Producers Begin Tapping Talent To Test For Role Of 007; Next Round Of Auditions To Take Place In August’.
Penned by Deadline‘s Film editor By Justin Kroll and published on June 24th, and presented as an ‘Exclusive’, Kroll’s article claimed that fans of the James Bond franchise were ‘getting closer to finding out who will next play the iconic spy for future installments’. Kroll revealed that sources had told Deadline that producers and director Denis Villeneuve had begun informing talent who had made the next round of Bond auditions. Villeneuve had been calling talent directly, and while Deadline was not able to confirm any names, sources had said the auditions were set to take place in August, 2026.
As far as the JBIFC understand it, a round of auditions of Bond actor contendors was indeed due to take place this month (August, 2026), with executives hoping that a shortlist of potential candidates will be in place by the autumn (fall). This would tie in nicely with Amy Pascal’s latest comments.
Watch this space for further announcements about Bond 26 and 007 news. You know the name, and you know the number.
American movie executive Amy Pascal