Former James Bond actor George Lazenby thinks Liam Hemsworth should be next 007

Former James Bond actor George Lazenby has revealed who he wants to see pick up the iconic role following Daniel Craig’s departure - and he’s backing a fellow Aussie.

Lazenby was the second actor to play 007 - following Sean Connery - and appeared in 1969’s On Her Majesty's Secret Service.

As you may have seen, speculation has been heating up about who will be the next Bond with Craig bowing out of the franchise after more than 15 years and five films.

Over the past few months, we’ve seen numerous names tossed into the ring including Henry Cavill, Idris Elba, Tom Hardy and the most recent favourite Aaron Taylor-Johnson.

Now, Lazenby - who was also the youngest Bond ever at just 29 - has revealed who he’d like to see take on the role and he’s picked a fellow countryman.

Lazenby reckons ‘good-looking Aussie dude’ Liam Hemsworth should be the next star to take on Bond because he believes the next actor must be ‘crazy enough, arrogant enough, confident enough, ambitious enough to take on the role’ after Craig.

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Lazenby also pointed to Hemsworth’s impressive CV and the fact he’s got enough experience to deal with all the media attention the role brings.

He makes an interesting case, but it could be too late for Hemsworth to get his hopes up, as it was recently reported that Kick-Ass star Taylor-Johnson had met with Bond producers.

A Puck report from Matthew Belloni last week, read: "And, obviously, the granddaddy of casting coups: James Bond. The Aaron Taylor-Johnson rumors are true – he sat with producer Barbara Broccoli, and the meeting went well, per sources."

But there might be a small problem, Belloni added: "While Taylor-Johnson fits the bill—great actor, British, fits the younger direction the Broccolis want to go, accomplished but not particularly famous – he’s about to be a much bigger star.

"If Sony’s Spider-Man spinoff Kraven the Hunter or Universal’s Ryan Gosling two-hander The Fall Guy works, Taylor-Johnson might end up, ironically, too famous to take on Bond."

IAN GEORGESON / Alamy Stock Photo

Back in November, The Sun claimed that Taylor-Johnson had impressed Bond franchise boss Barbara Broccoli in his audition at Pinewood Studios.

One insider told the paper: "Aaron went for a screen test to be the next Bond in September and producers and Barbara loved him. He is now one of the front-runners."

And they’re not wrong - an odds-checker website currently puts Taylor-Johnson at 9/4 against Cavill at 9/4, Rege-Jean Page at 13/2 and James Norton at 8/1.