Former James Bond George Lazenby Endorses Aaron Taylor-Johnson for 007

Even though the producers behind the wildly popular James Bond franchise have yet to officially name the actor to play the spy, all signs are pointing towards Aaron Taylor-Johnson being a frontrunner for the role. If that’s the case, there’s at least one previous Bond actor entirely on board with it: George Lazenby. The star behind 1969’s On Her Majesty’s Secret Service told TMZ in a recent stop that he believes Taylor-Johnson has what it takes to be Bond.

The Avengers: Age of Ultron star has been asked about the rumors countless times, playing more coy the further the rumors grow. Last August, Taylor-Johnson said he was focusing on promoting Sony’s next Spider-Man Universe movie Kraven the Hunter, where he plays the eponymous villain.

“I’ve spent two years making Kraven. So all that hard work we put into trying to get that to where it is—that’s where I’m at right now,” the Avengers: Age of Ultron alumnus told the magazine. “I just focus on the things I can have in my hands right now. What’s in front of me right now.”

Bond producer Barbra Broccoli, however, said earlier last year there’s no official frontrunner for the role.

“Nobody’s in the running,” she began last year. “We’re working out where to go with him, we’re talking that through. There isn’t a script and we can’t come up with one until we decide how we’re going to approach the next film because, really, it’s a reinvention of Bond. We’re reinventing who he is and that takes time. I’d say that filming is at least two years away.”

“He can be of any color, but he is male,” Broccoli told the press before that when asked about switching up the formula. “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.”