Roger Moore hasn't been 007 since 1985 (and hasn't done much of note since) but he is here to tell us that Idris Elba is not right for the part. The British actor's name has been thrown around as Daniel Craig's successor as James Bond for a while now, but Moore is not having it. In an interview with Paris Match, Moore said he doesn't think Elba is English enough.
"A few years ago, I said that Cuba Gooding Jr. would make an excellent Bond, but it was a joke! Although James may have been played by a Scot, a Welshman and an Irishman, I think he should be 'English-English.' Nevertheless, it's an interesting idea, but unrealistic," he said.
First off, we're not sure why Cuba Gooding Jr., even in his post-Oscar glow, would ever be considered for the iconic role of James Bond (he was born in the Bronx). Critics have, in the past, been up in arms that Bond actors weren't actually English—Sean Connery is Scottish, Timothy Dalton is Welsh, Pierce Brosnan is Irish and George Lazenby is Australian, for God's sake. Elba was born in London and grew up there (it doesn't get more English than that), though his father is from Sierra Leone and his mother is from Ghana. So by "English-English" does Moore mean white?
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