Harris Dickinson may soon be trading in his indie roots for a license to kill.

The rising British actor — known for The King’s Man, Beach Rats, and this year’s Babygirl — is reportedly one of the frontrunners to become the next James Bond as Amazon gears up for the 26th installment in the long-running franchise. According to insiders, producers are prioritizing a British actor under the age of 30, and Dickinson is near the top of a shortlist that also includes Spider-Man’s Tom Holland and Saltburn breakout Jacob Elordi.

While Elordi is Australian, that’s not a deal-breaker. As one insider pointed out, “remember Aussie George Lazenby starred in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service.”

The casting race is heating up now that Amazon has officially tapped Denis Villeneuve (Dune, Arrival) to direct the film, with a tentative release date set for 2028. According to Variety, sources say anything sooner would be “impossible to pull off,” due to the scale of the project and Villeneuve’s current commitments.

Villeneuve reportedly beat out a field of top European directors — including Edward Berger, Edgar Wright, Paul King, and Jonathan Nolan — to take over the coveted franchise. He’s currently planning to film Dune: Messiah later this year for a December 2026 release, so Bond 26 won’t enter production until after that.

The next steps for Amazon are securing a screenwriter and locking in its new Bond. While names like Aaron Taylor-Johnson (35) and Henry Cavill (42) have circulated in the rumor mill for years, their ages are said to be out of step with the studio’s current vision. The same reportedly goes for fan-favorite Idris Elba, now 52, who has sidestepped Bond speculation for over a decade — and, as of now, no meetings have taken place.

Villeneuve’s deal is reportedly for one film only, and he does not have final cut — a longstanding tradition in the Bond franchise that Amazon is continuing, even after Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson officially stepped back from creative control earlier this year. The two longtime Bond producers now retain only a financial stake in the series.

At one point, Gravity director Alfonso Cuarón was in serious contention for the gig. Bond producer David Heyman had pushed hard for the filmmaker, given their collaboration on Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. But Cuarón ultimately stepped aside to focus on other projects, including Jane, a Charlize Theron film also at Amazon. Jane is currently awaiting a draft from Enola Holmes screenwriter Jack Thorne.

Christopher Nolan was also heavily courted — Amazon reportedly even considered letting him break the franchise’s sacred “no final cut” rule. But the Oppenheimer director is currently tied up on his next project, The Odyssey, which also stars Tom Holland.

As for the Bond 26 script, Jonathan Nolan’s take on the character reportedly wowed Amazon brass, but despite his strong relationship with the studio via Fallout, he is not available to write.

So while the next Bond film is still years away, Harris Dickinson’s name is now squarely in the conversation — and as the studio narrows its search, the 28-year-old London native could soon find himself sipping martinis, dodging bullets, and redefining 007 for a new generation.