Aaron Taylor-Johnson, who is hotly tipped to play the next James Bond, caused quite a stir at the Venice Film Festival on Saturday at the premiere of Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein
The official confirmation on the new James Bond star continues to keep fans on tenterhooks. Favourite for the role, Aaron Taylor-Johnson appears to be doing his best to throw fans off the scene as he stepped out with a wildly different new look at the Venice Film Festival on Saturday.
The actor, 35, who is married to Hollywood director, Sam Taylor-Johnson, 58, was in the Italian city for the premiere of Guillermo del Toro’s new flick, Frankenstein.
However, instead of rocking up at the star-studded event, with just a touch of stubble and hair cropped short as usual, the star appeared with a huge bushy beard and a mop of curly locks, looking virtually unrecognisable.
While fans barely recognised Aaron’s new look on Saturday, he’s long been willing to experiment with facial hair after expressing his admiration for bold beards 10 years ago.
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Speaking to the Guardian in 2015, he said: “I’ve seen some pretty impressive beards from some young lads. Guys saying to one another: ‘Dude, I saw you two weeks ago, what the f***? That’s some serious growth you’ve got going on there. F***in’ hell!’”
Aaron usually grows out his hair for acting roles — with it reportedly taking him nearly three months to grow a beard for 28 Years Later, which premiered earlier this year.
Completing his striking look in Venice, he wore a crisp white tailored blazer, black slacks, shiny slip-ons and a black bow tie. However, it was his watch, which caused a real stir.
Amid rumours Aaron will be playing the next James Bond, he rocked a huge wristwatch on the red carpet, after signing a deal with official 007 watch provider, Omega.
The Bullet Train actor has become a global ambassador for the luxury watchmaker, visiting the brand’s watchmaking home in Bienne, Switzerland, where he enjoyed “an exclusive tour, meeting the watchmakers behind our timepieces”.
The partnership has sent Bond fans into a frenzy, as Omega has had a 30-year association with the 007 franchise, with many interpreting this collaboration as the strongest hint yet that Aaron will succeed Daniel Craig as the legendary MI6 agent.
However, as reports continue to suggest the star is the bookie’s favourite to follow in the footsteps of Craig as Bond, Aaron was recently replaced by Henry Cavill as the ‘punters’ clear favourite’ to play the iconic secret agent.
A load of other names have also been touted since the actor relinquished the role in 2021 after the release of No Time To Die.
According to new odds from Ladbrokes, Henry has been slashed from 10/1 to 3/1, making him the current second favourite.
The bookies also revealed he was punters’ clear favourite to be the next Bond in terms of bets placed.
But, Aaron is still the frontrunner, with odds-on at 8/11, while Netflix star, Theo James, is now out at 7/1 from 5/1.
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