Idris Elba and Daniel Craig Take ‘Awks’ Photo During Golden Globes

Idris Elba posed for an “awks” selfie with Daniel Craig at the Golden Globes, throwing fuel on the fire for rumors that he will play the next James Bond.

Elba has been in the running for James Bond for years now — at least among fans. In the last few months, he has embraced the idea more and more, perhaps finally seeing the appeal of the role. At the 2019 Golden Globes, he even posed for a selfie with current James Bond actor Craig, pasting the word “awks…” over the image.

Elba posted the photo on Twitter on Monday morning. It showed Craig staring him down with an intense gaze, while Elba side-eyed him suspiciously. They were surrounded by other stars, and over their shoulders was a massive screen reading Golden Globe Awards.

Craig has played Agent 007 for over a decade now, starting with Casino Royale in 2006. Following Spectre in 2015, he claimed to be done with the character. During the press tour for the movie, he told Men’s Journal that he would rather “slit my wrists” than play the super spy again, and in an interview with the Red Bulletin, he said that Bond is “actually a misogynist.”

Still, Bond is undeniably a film icon, spanning generations and defining different time periods for fans. If future iterations of James Bond were to be updated with more nuanced perspectives on gender, violence and international warfare, he wouldn’t be the first hero to get a moral makeover.

Many feel that Elba is just the man for the job, though he remains tight-lipped on his prospects. In a recent interview with Entertainment Tonight, Elba discussed the growing outcry for him to play the character.

“I appreciate it,” he said. “It’s a compliment, but I don’t think there’s any… it’s not going to happen. Just putting it out there. It’s not going to happen.”

Naturally, Elba has stirred up a lot of interest — for better or for worse — with the possibility of reinventing Bond as a black man. Actors who have played Bond have ranged in height, size, hair color and all other issues of appearance, but they have all been white.

Elba is British, meeting the main requirement for the role. Calls for him to play Bond may have peaked in 2015, when James Bond novel author Anthony Horowitz said that Elba was “too ‘street’ for Bond.” The outcry was swift and furious, and Horowitz quickly recanted. Still, ever since then many fans have longed to see a fresh take on the Bond mythos.