About tabloids and amnesia

In sports, athletes need to forget when they mess up and move on. So it is with British tabloids writing about James Bond films.

The Sun, Rupert Murdoch’s British tabloid, is a perfect example.

June 12, 2022: The Sun claims Idris Elba “is now being considered” to play James Bond “after ranking highly in market research tests.” Oh, really?

Nov. 27, 2022: The tabloid claims Aaron Taylor-Johnson “is a surprise frontrunner to become the next James Bond after he took part in a top-secret screen test.” This story kicked off Aaron Taylor-Johnson fever for a time.

Dec. 10, 2022: The Sun now claims that Taylor-Johnson has filmed a gunbarrel sequence and Eon Productions “looks to reveal the franchise’s new star in March (2023).” Such an announcement never materializes.

Dec. 9, 2023: You can’t keep a good tabloid down. The Sun now says Eon is seeking two actors to play Bond at two stages of life, one younger and one older, with Paul Mescal as a possibility as a younger Bond.

The story has this line: “Rumours about 007’s potential replacement have been swirling for years.” Yeah. And The Sun has been stirring the pot for those rumors.

March 7, 2024: The Sun comes out with a new story that Cillian Murphy, 47, the star of Oppenheimer, is a new favorite to play Bond. If this comes to pass, he’d be the oldest actor for a Bond debut in an Eon film. Roger Moore was in his mid-40s when he filmed Live And Let Die.

In real life, Eon has said repeatedly very little has happened with Bond 26. Some of that, of course, may be so much hooey. Eon often fibs (to be polite). But to start a new Bond era with an actor who turns 48 in May? Just how many Bond films will you get out of Murphy? At the current rate of production, one if you’re lucky.

Once again, writing for a tabloid requires amnesia. Also, the tabloids are counting on readers to forget as well.