James Bond actors in order of appearance are Sean Connery, David Niven, George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan and Daniel Craig. Next James Bond actor will surprise you.

James Bond is a fictional character created in 1952 by the British journalist and novelist named Ian Fleming. Eight other authors have written Bond novels after the death of Fleming in 1964. In May 2022, the publisher Anthony Horowitz released a recent novel titled With a Mind to Kill.

The character also known by the code number 007 has been adapted for television, video games, films, and comic strip. It is one of the longest regularly running film series. 

Fleming first introduced the character over twelve novels and two short story collections. Bond has since been continued in various novels and other spin-off works since Fleming’s passing in 1964.

Bond was first portrayed on screen by American actor Barry Nelson in 1954. James Bond actors in order with pictures who starred in film series is listed below.

1. Sean Connery (1962–1967, 1970–1971 and 1982–1983)

Sean Connery was the first actor to portray James Bond in the film Dr. No (1962). Sean took a break for a few years but came back twice in 1970 and 1980.

Starting his career in theatre and television, Sean became one of the biggest names of his day through his role as Bond. Though many thought the part would eat him up, he has since surpassed Bond to be known as Sean Connery.

The actor was born in Fountainbridge, Edinburgh, on 25 August 1930. Sean had many jobs before stepping into acting.

At the age of 23, the difficult situation arose where he has to choose between becoming a professional footballer or an actor. Even though he showed much interest in the sport, he chose acting and said it was one of his more intelligent moves.

Connery’s first major movie role was in 1957 in the name No Road Back and it was followed by several made-for-TV movies. He was well known after he had his role as secret James Bond in 1962.

He played James Bond in six more films including:

• From Russia with Love (1963)
• Goldfinger (1964)
• Thunderball (1965)
• You Only Live Twice (1967)
• Diamonds Are Forever (1971)
• Never Say Never Again (1983)

After becoming famous he has been in several movies such as:

• Alfred Hitchcock’s Marnie (1964)
• The Hill (1965)
• Murder on the Orient Express (1974)
• The Man Who Would Be King (1975)
• Time Bandits (1981)
• The Hunt of Red October (1990)
• The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (2003) and so on.

For his acting and his contribution to the work he has won and been nominated for different awards as:

Won

• Academy Awards of 1987 for the category Best Supporting Actor and Best Actor.
• Golden Globe Awards of 1972 and 1987 for the category of Best Supporting Actor Motion Picture.

Nominated

• British Academy Film Awards of 1989 for the category of Best Supporting Actor, Best Actor, and BAFTA Fellowship.
• Golden Globe Awards for the category Henrietta Award (World Film Favorite-Male).

At the age of 90, he died on 31 October 2020 in Nassau, the Bahamas, where he lived.

2. David Niven (1967)

James David Graham Niven was a British actor and novelist. He began his career in acting field in the 1930s.

Niven was born in London on 1st March 1910. Before joining Royal Military College, he attended Stowe School and Heatherdown Preparatory School.

During World War II, he served in the British Army before returning to acting in the late 1940s. In the Highland Light Infantry, he was designated as a second lieutenant. 

After a growing interest in acting, he started his career by playing as an extra in 1932’s There Goes the Bride. He resigned from the army in 1933, relocated to New York then shifted to Hollywood. There he hired an agent and had numerous small parts in films through 1935.

Despite an absence of six years, he was still 2nd in the 1945 British film stars popularity poll. He appeared in many shows on television and nearly 100 films.

Some of his contributions to the entertainment industry are:

•  A Matter of Life and Death (1946)
• The Bishop’s Wife (1947)
• Enchantment (1948)
• The Elusive Pimpernel (1950)
• Happy Ever After (1954)
• Around the World in 80 Days (1956) and so on.

He also started writing books with considerable commercial success. Moreover, he has also published several novels and memoirs.

According to his IMDb, he has won different awards:

• Primetime Emmy Awards
• BAFTA Awards
• Evening Standard British Film Awards
• Golden Apple Awards
• Sant Jordi Awards
• Walk of Fame
• Golden Globes, USA
• Laurel Awards
• New York Film Critics Circle Awards.

3. George Lazenby (1968–1969)

George Lazenby is an Australian most famous James Bond actor. George was the third actor to act as James Bond in the Eon Productions film series.

Lazenby, who only appeared in one movie, has the shortest tenure as Bond. When he was cast to replace original Bond actor Sean Connery at that time he had only acted in commercials. With the screen-test fight scene, the strength of his interviews, fight skills, and audition footage he won the role.

After serving in the Australian Army in 1964 he moved to London. Before stepping into the entertainment field he worked as an auto mechanic, used car salesman, and a male model in London.

The actor was born in Goulburn, New South Wales on 5 September 1939. Until 1954 he attended the Goulburn Public School in the primary years.

Before the premiere of his only film, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service in 1969, Lazenby left the role of Bond.

Lazenby has acted in TV movies, commercials, and various recurring roles in TV series and some of them are:

• The Shrine of Ultimate Bliss (1974)
• The Man from Hong Kong (1975)
• Universal Solider (1971)
• The Kentucky Fried Movie (1977)
• Death Game (2017)
• In The Blink of An Eye (2021)
• This Hour Has 22 Minutes (2012) and so on.

4. Roger Moore (1972–1985)

Roger Moore was an English actor. Moore was the fourth Bond actor and played the role from 1973 to 1985.

Roger’s seven appearances as Bond from Live and Let Die to A View to a Kill are the most of any actor in the Eon-produced entries.

The actor had his professional debut in Alexander Korda’s Perfect Strangers. Some of his other uncredited appearances are:

• Gaiety George
• Caesar and Cleopatra
• Piccadilly Incident and 
• Trottie True

Likewise, he had his first television appearance on 27 March 1949 in The Governess where he played the part of Bob Drew. In the early 1950s, he worked as a model appearing in print advertisements in the UK. He received his breakthrough from the series named The Siant.

The United States never completely took to him until he starred in The Cannonball Run despite his fame from the Bond films and many others.

Throughout his career, he has been played in various movies and TV shows and some of them are:

Films

• Diane (1956)
• That Lucky Touch (1975)
• Sherlock Holmes in New York (1976)
• Boat Trip (2002)
• The Lighter (2011)
• The Carer (2016)

TV shows

• The Governess (1949)
• The Clay of Kings (1953)
• Assignment Foreign Legion (1957)
• Victoria Wood with All the Trimmings (2000)
• Tatort (2002)
• The Life of Rock with Brian Pern (2014) and so on.

On December 31, 1998, in the New Year’s Honors for services to UNICEF he was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire. On 14 June 2003, he was also promoted to Knight Commander of the same order.

At the age of 89, he died due to cancer on 23 May 2017 in Switzerland.

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5. Timothy Dalton (1986–1994)

Timothy Dalton is a British actor. Dalton was renowned as the fifth actor to portray James Bond in two movies: The Living Daylights and Licence to Kill. 

According to “Inside The Living Daylights,” Dalton had been considered for Bond several Times but was first approached for the role in August 1968 following Moore’s retirement.

He made his film debut as Philip II of France in 1968 at the start of his career. He has also been in many films including:

• Wuthering Heights (1970)
• Flash Gordon (1980)
• Looney Tunes: Back in Action (2003)
• Jane Eyre (1983)
• The Tourist (2010)
• Penny Dreadful (2014-2016)
• Doom Patrol (2019-2021)

6. Pierce Brosnan (1994–2004)

Pierce Brosnan is an Irish film producer and actor. Brosnan is best known as the sixth actor to play James Bond.

The Bond film series four films are:

• Tomorrow Never Dies
• The World Is Not Enough
• GoldenEye
• Die Another Day

Brosnan took the lead in other major films after achieving worldwide fame for his role as James Bond.

From the TV series name Remington Steele, he gains a name in TV. After this, he has been seen in films such as The Fourth Protocol and Mrs. Doubtfire.

He has starred in films such as the political thriller The Ghost Writer, the action fantasy Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lighting Thief, and so on before leaving the role of Bond.

Pierce then took a post of ASM at York Theatre Royal and had also done a 3-year course at the London Drama Centre, Then after playwriter Tennessee Williams selected him in The Red Devil Battery Sign.

As per his performance,

• For the mini-series Nancy Astor and for the comedy film The Matador he has received two Golden Globe Award nominations.
• For his contributions to the film industry in 1997, he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
• Similarly, in 2020 on The Irish Times’ list of greatest Irish film actors, he was listed as No. 15.

7. Daniel Craig (2005–2021)

Daniel Craig five-movie run as 007 is one of the most renowned runs in the characters’ history. Many put him in the same league as Connery and is the mostpopular James Bond actor.

Craig has gone on to star as James Bond in 

• Casino Royale (2006)
• Quantum of Solace (2008)
• Skyfall (2012)
• Spectre (2015) and 
• No Time to Die (2021)

The Power of One was the first film where Daniel made his film debut. His film career continued on television, notably in the serial named Our Friends in the North. After laying supporting roles in Lara Croft: Tomb Raider and Road to Perdition he shot to international fame.

In October 2005 Craig was named the sixth actor to portray James Bond. He was the first to be born after the start of the film series and is the first blond actor to play Bond.

Daniel was a good choice as Bond as per the four past Bond actors Sean Connery, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, and Pierce Brosnan. Further, he has given his voice and likeness to James Bond for both the Wii game Golden Eye 007, Nintendo 64, and James Bond 007: Blood Stone.

In the leading role in Layer Cake of 2004, he was nominated for his performances and received other awards and nominations. 

The actor has also been in other movies as:

• The Power of One
• Obsession
• Some Voices
• The Jacket
• Dream House
• No Time to Die and many more.

He has also been in TV shows and some of them are:

• Covington Cross
• Drop the Dead Donkey
• Heartbeat
• Screen Two 
• The Hunger
• Sword of Honour
• Saturday Night Live and so on.

The List of Next James Bond Actors

There have been several speculations about the next James Bond actors since Daniel Craig announced that No Time To Die would be his last James Bond film.

The successful candidate will become the eighth actor to play the character following Sean Connery, David Niven, George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan, and Daniel Craig.

Here is the list of the actors who could either be the next James Bond or have addressed the possibility of replacing Daniel Craig.

1. James Norton

James Norton is the new favorite to play Bond. In a lot of respects, his McMafia character Alex may be the polar opposite of Bond, but they share the same fabric.

The possibility of James Norton being the next James Bond is quite high considering his triumphant career trajectory.

2. Aaron Taylor-Johnson

Aaron Taylor has now dropped to the second favorite and he recently shot to the top of the actors most likely to become Bond in September and the producer Barbara Broccoli had loved him. 

3. Henry Cavill

To be the next Bond Henry Cavill has been the favorite but now has been into third place.

When he was 22, he had auditioned for the role and had loosed out to Craig in 2005. The Bond producers don’t usually go for big-name actors and this counts against him. So, Cavill can be ruled out for that quality alone.

4. Regé-Jean Page

Regé-Jean Page was a favorite for the role for a few weeks late post-year. Now he has been the fourth favorite among all. 

5. Tom Hardy

Tom Hardy has been rumored as a potential 007. In the movies like The Dark Knight Rises and Mad Max: Fury Road Hardy has shown his action chops by showing a physical transformation throughout his career that would lend itself well to a hard-hitting Bond.

The other actors are listed below:

6. Idris Elba

7. Luke Evans

8. Callum Turner

9. Richard Madden

10. Michael Fassbender

11. Jamie Dornan

12. Cillian Murphy

13. Chiwetel Ejiofor

14. Jamie Bell

15. Tom Hopper

16. Jack Lowden

17. Sam Heughan

18. Nikolaj Coster- Waldau

19. Aiden Turner

20. Kit Harington

21. Jonathan Bailey

Some FAQs

How many actors played James Bond?

Altogether seven actors have portrayed James Bond in film.

Who will replace Daniel Craig as James Bond?

The top five actors replacing Daniel Craig are:

1. James Norton
2. Aaron Taylor- Johnson
3. Henry Cavill
4. Tom Hardy
5. Idris Alba