Who should be James Bond next? Henry Cavill still internet's pick

(NEXSTAR) — This week, major news in the world of 007 had the internet shaken and stirred. On Thursday, Amazon MGM Studios — which owns the long-running James Bond franchise — announced the studio would be taking over creative control of the series.

The franchise has been creatively managed by the children of "007" producer Albert R. Broccoli, Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson, since 1995. While many online derided the decision to hand over the beloved series to a corporation, others are curious about the possibilities new control might bring.

Chief among the questions regarding the future of the series? The eternal question: Who will be the next James Bond?

Over on X, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos posed the question to his 6 million followers: "Who'd you pick as the next Bond?"

Popular answers included a few names that have been bandied about for years, including Idris Elba, Michael Fassbender and Tom Hardy. Newer popular picks include "Kraven" actor Aaron Taylor-Johnson, who is rumored to have screen tested with Broccoli in March 2022, and cinephile 'It Boy' Harris Dickinson, who recently starred alongside Nicole Kidman in the erotic thriller "Babygirl."

But one actor still reigns above all James Bond fan casts after all these years.

You probably guessed by now that social media's favorite fantasy James Bond is 41 year-old Henry Cavill, best known for his role as Superman in the DC Extended Universe. Cavill commented on the long-running desire for him to play the world's most famous secret agent just last year.

"Can we all agree that Henry Cavill would be the best James Bond?" one of Bezos' post's most popular replies read.

But could it actually happen?

During press for "The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare," in which Cavill himself played a fictionalized version of real-life British special-ops veteran who was partially Ian Fleming's inspiration for Bond, Cavill told "The Rich Eisen Show" that he knew about as much as any of us do.

"I have no idea, all I’ve got to go off is the rumors. The same information you have. Maybe I’m too old now, maybe I’m not, we’ll see. It’s up to Barbara Broccoli and Mike Wilson, but we’ll see what their plans are," said Cavill.

Given the changing of the guard in the world of Bond, it's unclear whether or not Cavill will be seriously considered. Interestingly, Cavill previously auditioned for Bond, and was loved by "Casino Royale" director Martin Campbell, but the job ultimately went to Daniel Craig.

“He looked great. His acting was tremendous. And look, if Daniel didn’t exist, Henry would have made an excellent Bond. He looked terrific, he was in great physical shape… very handsome, very chiseled," said Campbell. He just looked a little young at that time back then.”

Ultimately, age and timing could be critical.

Based on the math and on the length of Craig's Bond run, Cavill, 41, would be four years older than Craig was when he began his 15-year tenure. Were Cavill to be cast and start this year, he'd be 56 at the end of a similar run.

But Bond superfan and author of "Catching Bullets: Memoirs of a Bond Fan," Mark O'Connell told BBC he thinks Amazon will "bring it younger."

"There's a lot of guys that keep getting quoted [and], I'm like, they're too old," said O'Connell, speaking specifically of Hardy, who's 47 years-old. O'Connell said he liked Dickinson as a prospect, in addition to Irish actor Paul Mescal, 29, and Kingsley Ben-Adir, 38, who recently portrayed musician Bob Marley in "Bob Marley: One Love."

Late last year, major rumors circulated that actor Josh O'Connor ("Challengers") was highly favored to take the role, though the 34 year-old Brit told Deadline he believed the rumors originated from a joke he made. O'Connor added: "If I am Bond, I don't know about it."

O'Connor would likely bring a new kind of masculinity to the hyper-masculine character. O'Connor himself has become a well-known "internet boyfriend" and has been widely celebrated for his soft and kind demeanor. Last summer, O'Connor was even featured as the poster boy for what Dazed positively called the "fruity boys" trend — which posits that straight women are increasingly attracted to men who are a little feminine.

In light of the recent Bond news, Daily Mail collaborated with U.K. gambling company William Hill to determine the odds of a variety of actors rumored to be Bond. Ultimately, William Hill gave O'Connor 7/1 odds of becoming Bond — the best of any other actors mentioned.

Only time will tell what the next era of "Bond" will look like but as always, fans and filmgoers alike will be waiting.