This weekend, rumours have been swirling that Tom Hardy has been cast as the new James Bond, replacing Daniel Craig.
While the exciting though they are, they reports have not yet been officially confirmed.
The Vulcan Reporter first reported that the Venom actor, 43, had signed contracts to replace Craig, 52, after auditioning for the role in June.
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The US outlet said that an official announcement naming Hardy as the 007 predecessor was due to come in November, but will now likely be pushed back due to the pandemic.
Soon after the article went live on Friday 18th, the Mad Max actor's name began trending on Twitter - and stayed that way over the weekend.
"I can't stop thinking about Tom Hardy being the next James Bond," wrote one excited fan.
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"Tom Hardy the next James Bond? I'm happy with that," agreed another.
"Have I ever watched a Bond movie before? No. Will I watch them for Tom Hardy? Yes," said a third.
"TOM HARDY JAMES BOND RUMOURS.......... I FEEL THE COALS OF HOPE STOKED IN MY CHEST," a fourth said, speaking for us all.
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If true, Hardy will take over from Craig in the twenty-sixth instalment of the British spy franchise, following No Time to Die which is due to be released on 12th November. The film will be Craig's fifth and final film as the iconic agent.
Other actors rumoured to be taking over the role include Idris Elba, Robert Pattinson and Richard Madden.
Furthermore, bookies have slated odds on Hardy becoming the next James Bond, with the actor now overtaking Idris Elba as the bookies favourite.
Ladbrokes has slashed odds from 8/1 to 4/5 over the course of the past 24 hours after bets rolled in over the weekend.
Alex Apati from the betting agents told our friends over at UNILAD: "A flurry of bets over the past 24 hours suggests the cat is out the bag and it's Tom Hardy that'll soon be replacing Daniel Craig as 007."
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Meanwhile, Coral's David Stevens told Metro: "The betting on who will play James Bond is always popular with our punters, with James Norton and Sam Heughan the two most recent favourites.
"But Tom Hardy has always been close to the head of the betting, and indeed was as short as 6-4 favourite last year, so if he has indeed landed the coveted role, the bookies will have been left shaken if not stirred."
While we're miles off an official confirmation, we're still allowing ourselves to get excited.
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Until then, let us just leave you with the thought of Tom Hardy in a tuxe. Oh my.
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