Putting rumours to rest, actor Idris Elba confirmed that he was "nowhere" near being cast as James Bond following Daniel Craig's exit from the franchise.

According to reports, The Golden Globe Award-winner said that although he is very close to the franchise producers, they have not thought about the possibility of him playing the iconic character. 

Speaking to The Guardian, he said "I love the Bond franchise, I'm very close to the producers. We were all kind of laughing about the rumours because they are just that." Meanwhile, he reportedly said to People that the rumour of him playing Bond is certainly a compliment and it's an honour. However, it is not the truth.