Author Anthony Horowitz, who is currently penning the new James Bond novel, has said he doesn’t believe Idris Elba would be the right man to take over the role of 007 because he is “too street” for the role.
Elba is currently the bookies’ favourite to play the famous fictional British secret agent when Daniel Craig steps down from the franchise, but Horowitz doesn’t agree that the 42-year-old would be a good fit in the role.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, Horowitz said:
For me, Idris Elba is a bit too rough to play the part. It’s not a colour issue. I think he is probably a bit too “street” for Bond. Is it a question of being suave? Yeah.
After his comments, many fans accused the author of making a veiled racist remark and Horowitz has since apologised for the remark, saying he used “a poor choice of word” and he is “mortified to have caused offence”.
It should be noted that Horowitz added that he felt another black actor, Adrian Lester, would be a better choice to play Bond and claimed he was thinking of Elba’s “gritty portrayal of DCI John Luther” when he made the original comment.
Horowitz is currently promoting Trigger Mortis, a new novel featuring Bond, which has been given the go ahead by the estate of original 007 author Ian Fleming.
The next James Bond film Spectre, starring Daniel Craig, will tell 007’s origin story and hits cinemas in November.
