The name's Darcy, Mr Darcy.
Jack Lowden has set hearts ablaze with the new photos showing him stepping into the shoes of Jane Austen's famous heartthrob, Mr Darcy, in the Netflix adaptation of the classic novel written by Dolly Alderton.
© NetflixBut there is another role that Jack, 36, is allegedly in line for, and that is to step into the shoes of Daniel Craig as everyone's favourite suave spy James Bond.
Casting for the new role is well underway, and Jack's name has made headlines in recent weeks after his Slow Horses co-star, Gary Oldman, confirmed the Scottish-born actor was in the running to be the next 007.
Correcting the reports that he'd accidentally revealed Jack was in fact the new 007, the Sirius Black actor said: "I simply said: 'Well, I believe that they've chosen the guy... and Jack is on the list. Fingers crossed for Jack', and then it was reported that I had some inside information," Gary said.
"I don't know any more than you do. There are six candidates. The rumour is that they've made their pick, but we don't know who it is, and they're waiting to announce it."
© WireImage"Jack is... young, he's masculine, he's incredibly funny, which I think is important," the Oscar winner said. "Part of the recipe for Bond, he's got to have his sort of tongue in his cheek slightly, and a twinkle in his eye, and Jack Lowden has those qualities. And he's a lovely guy to boot."
But Jack's Mr Darcy to 007 trajectory got us thinking about his fellow A-list hopefuls in the running to portray the new Bond, and they all have incredible period drama prowess - and certainly have the heartthrob status worthy of 007's dashing appearance.
Keep scrolling as we look at all the actors rumoured to play James Bond as their dashing period drama personas!
Callum Turner
© Alamy Stock PhotoHe may be Dua Lipa's husband, but there is equally impressive title that Callum Turner holds in our opinion, and that is the unofficial king of period dramas.
The Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them star, 36, has played major roles in at least six standout period pieces, alongside fellow A-listers Anya Taylor-Joy, Lily James, Austin Butler, George Clooney, and Shailene Woodley, across the big and small screen.
© Alamy Stock PhotoThe epic titles include The Boys in the Boat (2023), The Last Letter from Your Lover (2021), Emma (2020), War & Peace (2016), Queen and Country (2014).
But our stand-out has to be the most recent blockbuster, where he starred in Apple TV+'s miniseries Masters of the Air, produced by Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks in 2024.
Callum played the dashingly charismatic but hard-drinking bomb commander Major John Egan - and the uniform wasn't bad either!
© Alamy Stock PhotoAddressing the rumours, Callum told the Hollywood Reporter: "I know as much as you do – really, I know as much as you do."
He added: "I am not going to comment on that."But he went on to share: “I will tell you what’s so funny about the Bond thing: Even your best friends ask you, people text you that you haven’t spoken to for 10 years – and you know nothing!
“It is such a weird thing of something happening and nothing happening at all. I genuinely know nothing. I just find it quite amusing.”
Jacob Elordi
Heathcliff, is that you? One of Jacob Elordi's biggest and most divisive roles to date is his portrayal of Heathcliff in Emerald Fennell's adaptation of Wuthering Heights back in February.
From his hunky gold-tooth cap to his 'hot boy hoop', both of which the Euphoria star, 29, wore on and off screen, his role in the film, starring alongside Margot Robbie as Cathy, certainly made headlines.
© Alamy Stock PhotoBut his dashingly handsome Heathcliff aside, Jacob has also starred in Frankenstein (2026), On Swift Horses (2024) and Priscilla (2023), but could he be the next Bond?
The speculation that he is on the short list of stars to be the next 007 has followed him since his role as Felix in Emerald Fennell's Saltburn. During press for the film, he told Extra TV the idea of stepping into Daniel Craig's shoes was "beautiful."
"Bond? I thought it was Superman; I just like that people want to put me in their movies, that makes me very glad."
Regé-Jean Page
© Alamy Stock PhotoAfter winning the hearts of every gentle reader in the Ton - and ours, for that matter- Bond rumours quickly swirled around Regé-Jean Page, whose breakout role was in the Netflix hit, Bridgerton.
Prior to his breakout role, the British-Zimbabwean actor had appeared in period dramas Roots (2016) and Sylvie's Love (2020) as well as on stage in Shakespeare's A Merchant of Venice (2015).
Regé-Jean's Bond rumours came thick and fast and were described as "strange" due to their intensity.
"It is strange, it's not normal," he told Esquire. "How I navigate it is very much about what is useful, what serves me in my job, in being able to deliver what I need to deliver to an audience, and a lot of that is just grounding."
He also told Jimmy Fallon in 2021: "If you're a Brit, and you do something of any kind of renown that people regard well, then people start saying the 'B' word. It's like a merit badge. You get the 'B' word merit badge."
"I'm very, very glad to have the badge," he added at the time. "I'm glad to be in such wonderful company of people who have the badge. But it's a badge."
Paul Mescal
© Alamy Stock PhotoIrish heartthrob Paul Mescal's most recent period piece landed him with an Oscar nomination.
The Gladiator II actor, 30, was nominated for the prestigious gong for his portrayal of William Shakespeare in Chloe Zhao's adaptation of Hamnet - alongside Jessie Buckley - who won the accolade in 2026.
Paul also recently starred alongside Josh O'Connor in the WWI film The History of Sound.
© Alamy Stock PhotoBut could he be the next actor with a license to kill? If 2020 Paul had it his way, then most certainly!
Following his breakout role in the BBC's adaptation of Sally Rooney's Normal People, Paul told Digital Spy that year: I'm a huge Bond fan. The Gladiator II star said he is a massive fan of the franchise, but that nobody has called him - but that could have changed in recent years!
The "I think it's an incredible franchise. But it feels very, very far away from current circumstances. They're great rumours to be associated with. But the truth is, I haven't had anyone from the world of James Bond come near me."
Jack Barton
A new frontrunner in the growing James speculation is British actor, Jack Barton.
Jack may stand out for several reasons, one being that unlike many of the others, he isn't dating an industry It-girl, and he is a relatively unknown actor by the standards of those before him on the list. But it's for these reasons that he could make the perfect Bond according to producer Amy Pascal.
Amy opened up to Deadline about the qualities the team behind the franchise are looking for in their next 007. "It's got to be something really different that is... stirring and exciting and different,” she claimed.
"I don't want to see any of [the rumoured stars] as Bond because we now know so much about them," Debbie told the outlet.
"We want to know as little about them personally as possible, because that’s what spies are. We don’t need to know where he goes shopping or who his parents are, or where he lives." So it looks like Jack could be at the top of the list!
