Former 007 approves of Aaron Taylor-Johnson as James Bond

Former James Bond star George Lazenby has shared his stamp of approval for Aaron Taylor-Johnson to be the next actor to take on the mantle of Agent 007.

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Lazenby, who played Bond in the 1969 film On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, shared his thoughts on Taylor-Johnson’s rumoured posting as the beloved spy to TMZ, saying the young actor will seemingly be able to “handle the stunts and all the ladies who love a man in a tux.”

While Taylor-Johnson’s landing of the role was first rumoured last week, the casting has yet to be confirmed – which Lazenby also suspects to be the case. According to Lazenby, he doesn’t think the role’s necessarily Taylor-Johnson’s yet, relating it to his own experience in getting cast for the role in the 1960s.

Lazenby told TMZ that “when he auditioned for the part back in the 1960s, he went through a bunch of different tests and auditions before he won the role.” The former Bond star also said that he supports Taylor-Johnson as 007 “as long as they do the character justice,” and advised the actor “to be true to himself and reinvent the role to fit him.”

Last week, Taylor-Johnson discussed the rumours in a new interview with Rolling Stone. The Kick-Ass star said: “I can only really talk about the things I’m going to show and tell. So, The Fall Guy, Nosferatu, Kraven The Hunter,” reportedly delivering the answer with a “wry” stare.

He continued: “I don’t feel like I need to have a future drawn out for me. I feel like, whatever’s drawn out for me, I can fucking do better.”

Taylor-Johnson is best-known for his roles in action movies, including Bullet Train and Avengers: Age Of Ultron. However, he rose to prominence when he starred as the love interest in 2008’s Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging. He also portrayed a young John Lennon in Nowhere Boy, a biopic directed by his now wife, Sam Taylor-Johnson.