In a recent interview with Total Film, Spider-Man: No Way Home actor Tom Holland revealed that he’d put himself forward for a starring role in a James Bond origin story, only to be politely rebuffed by the overseers of the franchise.

"I had a meeting, after or during Spider-Man 2 [Far From Home], with Sony to pitch this idea of a young Bond film that I’d come up with," Holland told the publication. "It was the origin story of James Bond. It didn’t really make sense. It didn’t work. It was the dream of a young kid, and I don’t think the Bond estate were particularly interested."

It's not the first time he’s put himself in the frame (and then made a gun with his fingers and pow-powed at the bathroom mirror). "I mean, ultimately, as a young British lad who loves cinema, I'd love to be James Bond,” the 25-year-old told Variety in February 2021. “So, you know, I'm just putting that out there. I look pretty good in a suit."

"I'd be like a really short James Bond," he added.

Filming for Spider-Man: Far From Home was a few years back, and while 27-year-old Ben Platt’s role as a teenager in Dear Evan Hansen proved just how much could be achieved with a bit of de-ageing studio magic (i.e., nothing), a role as Yung Bond – depending on how Yung Yung Bond is supposed to be – could now be out of the window.

But that doesn’t mean Holland has missed his shot at 007. Thinking about it, he might be the right way to go?

Of course, he’s just one of many handsome, expensively-tailored British actors currently vying to take over from Daniel Craig, and only one of the many Toms – Hardy and Hopper, most notably – that hold a place on the bookies’ rankings. But Holland's incredible success in the Marvel Cinematic Universe bodes well for a franchise that is looking for a fresh new direction.

If the Broccoli family, who have controlled the film series for over sixty years, want to appeal to a new Gen Z audience, then Holland is the perfect choice. He has legions of dedicated fans (57.8 million on Instagram) and his third outing as Spider-Man has racked up $1.37 billion at the box office, making it the third highest grossing movie of all-time. He can even do Tik Tok dances, if that's James Bond’s vibe going forward (it will almost certainly not be his vibe.)

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Some critics will point to Tom Holland’s 5’8” height as being too short for a character who has, by and large, topped the six-foot mark. It’s become headline news over the past few weeks, as the 25-year-old hit back at journalists and trolls who have made "misogynistic" and "problematic" comments about the fact that he is two inches shorter than his girlfriend, Zendaya.

He’s right, obviously. So what better win would there be for the short king community (if 5’8” does indeed qualify you for the crown) than for Holland to take on the role of 007, and take on outdated preconceptions about masculinity in the process?

The team behind Bond should be paying attention. Safe to say, his upcoming role as gun-wielding action hero Nathan Drake in the upcoming Uncharted adaptation is something of an audition tape for Holland. And if it doesn't work out, there's a James Bond Jr. live-action just waiting to be commissioned.