Variety reports Eon Productions and MGM have long sought Malek to play the villain in the 25th 007 flick, but have been unable to pin him down due to scheduling conflicts, primarily due to his ongoing work on television drama Mr. Robot.
When Malek accepted the award for his role in the Queen biopic, he said, "We made a film about a gay man, an immigrant, who lived his life unapologetically himself". "The sides just wanted to wait and see whether Malek would win the Oscar, which would, of course, raise his quote". One is a new MI6 agent and the other is a friend to James Bond not unlike Olga Kurylenko's character in Quantum of Solace.
Variety is also reporting that actor Billy Magnussen (Game Night) is the top choice to play an American CIA operative that crosses paths with Bond.
The Bond movies have a history of scooping up newly minted Oscar winners to face off against the hero with the likes of Javier Bardem and Christoph Waltz joining the franchise as villains after striking gold at the Academy Awards.
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In addition, producers are seeking talent for a new Central Intelligence Agency agent role.
The film, which is expected to be Daniel Craig's last in the titular role, will be directed by Maniac mastermind Cary Joji Fukunaga. According to Variety, Magnussen is being eyed to play a Central Intelligence Agency operative in the film, although it's unknown at this stage if an offer has been made.
Also in the report it's claimed that Fukunaga submitted his latest draft at the start of 2019.
The cast of the film now features Léa Seydoux as Madeleine Swann, Ralph Fiennes as M, Naomie Harris as Eve Moneypenny, and Ben Whishaw as Q. The film earned $200 million domestically and $680.6 million internationally, for a worldwide total of $880.7 million. The upcoming 25th film will be the final one starring Craig as the British super-spy.
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