Kenneth Branagh wants to play the James Bond villain

He gained critical acclaim for his latest film, Murder on the Orient Express.

But Kenneth Branagh, 57, admitted he would love to play the villain in the next James Bond movie.

Inspired by Spectre’s Javier Bardem, the Emmy Award winning actor and director revealed it would be ‘delicious’ to take on the role as 007’s arch-nemesis. 

New Challenge? Kenneth Branagh, 57, admitted he would love to play the villain in the next James Bond movie

‘I think as an actor that is always delicious to play,’ he told the Mirror. 

‘I am a connoisseur of those Bond villains but it is a hard one to do.’ 

The Harry Potter legend added Daniel Craig’s Bond villains have been ‘Shakespearean’.

He said: ‘audiences want… as much complication as possible.’  

Taking on Craig: Inspired by Spectre's Javier Bardem, the Emmy Award winning actor and director revealed it would be 'delicious' to take on the role as 007's (Daniel Craig's)  arch-nemesis

Taking on Craig: Inspired by Spectre’s Javier Bardem, the Emmy Award winning actor and director revealed it would be ‘delicious’ to take on the role as 007’s (Daniel Craig’s)  arch-nemesis

Master of cinema: 'I think as an actor that is always delicious to play,' he told the Mirror 

Master of cinema: ‘I think as an actor that is always delicious to play,’ he told the Mirror 

If Kenneth was to gain the role, he would be the first British Bond villain in 17 years- with Toby Stephens as Gustav Graves playing the antagonist in Piers Brosnan’s Die Another Day in 2002.  

Despite throwing his name into the hat for the 007 film franchise, the actor is tapped to reprise his role of detective Hercule Poirot, after Twentieth Century Fox green-lit the development of another Christie tome, Death on the Nile, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Kenneth gained critical acclaim for directing Murder on the Orient Express, which was released last month and  featured a star-studded cast, including Branagh, Johnny Depp, Penelope Cruz, Willem Dafoe and Josh Gad.

Dark side: If Kenneth was to gain the role, he would be the first British Bond villain in 17 years- with Toby Stephens as Gustav Graves playing the antagonist in Piers Brosnan's Die Another Day in 2002

Dark side: If Kenneth was to gain the role, he would be the first British Bond villain in 17 years- with Toby Stephens as Gustav Graves playing the antagonist in Piers Brosnan’s Die Another Day in 2002

Branagh explained to NPR how he studied his character’s Poirot’s essence, while looking to add his own seasoning to Christie’s literary creation.

‘I basically went through the books with a Sharpie and highlighted anything I thought was part of what might make mine sort of different,’ he said.

‘And I’d have a little checklist of the things I’d go back to and have your sort of identikit version of who he is, ultimately trying to leap off into something that you thought moment to moment could be spontaneous and real.’

The untitled installment of the next James Bond film is expected to hit cinemas in November, 2019, with Daniel Craig reprising his role as Bond.

The name Bond: The untitled installment of the next James Bond film is expected to hit cinemas in November, 2019, with Daniel Craig reprising his role as Bond

The name Bond: The untitled installment of the next James Bond film is expected to hit cinemas in November, 2019, with Daniel Craig reprising his role as Bond



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