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For many, he’s head and shoulders above many of the candidates tipped to fill Daniel Craig’s rather large shoes as enigmatic secret agent James Bond.
Craig was 38-years old when he made his first appearance as 007 in Casino Royale, and James, just two years older at 40 and blessed with the chiselled good looks required of any incoming Bond, appears to tick all the right boxes.
But the Oxford-born actor admits working in an industry where a greater degree of is placed on youth made him fearful as he approached his fortieth birthday last year.
‘I thought I didn’t give a sh*t, but then when I turned 40 it was kind of more existentially seismic than I thought,’ he told Sunday Times Style.
‘This industry – not only this industry but the world we live in – is more and more visual. People, everything, is filtered. It’s definitely something that plays on your mind.
‘But I think people like to see history in someone’s face and someone’s personality. So literal and metaphorical lines on the face are interesting because they tell a story.’
Theo James admits celebrating his milestone 40th birthday last December felt ‘existentially seismic’ because of the a ting industry’s obsession with ageing
The actor has become a household name over recent years thanks to a string of successful TV roles, among them the lead in Guy Ritchie’s hit Netflix drama The Gentleman (pictured)
Prominent roles in TV shows The Time Traveller’s Wife and The White Lotus quickly turned James into a household name, before his lead in Guy Ritchie’s Netflix drama The Gentleman cemented his place among Britain’s most in-demand British acting talents.
But for all his success, James – who celebrates his 41st birthday on December 16 – insists he takes nothing for granted, a mindset he’s keen to impress upon his two young children with actress wife Ruth Kearney.
He said: ‘Again, it’s cheesy, because at the time, you do not feel like this – I’ve not felt like this many times – but it’s OK to fail.
‘I want to impress that on my own kids. You don’t always need to win. Failure and success should be hand in hand because they shape you as a person.
‘But also, if you have too much success, I think your grip on reality can shift a little bit. But maybe that’s just my excuse.’
Speaking of his role as bullish, arrogant financier Cameron in The White Lotus, James previously said: ‘People think once you’ve “made it”, the doors just swing open. But the truth is, you’re always hustling.
‘Even with The White Lotus, I had to fight for that role. There’s this balance between what you want and what the industry thinks you should want.’
James explained how the ‘gnawing sense of insecurity’ behind Cameron’s bravado is what drew him to the character.
James insists he takes nothing for granted, a mindset he’s keen to impress upon his two young children with actress wife Ruth Kearney (pictured together on July 13 2025)
The actor famously played bullish, arrogant financier Cameron in The White Lotus (pictured)
‘I’ve always been drawn to the contradictions in people. It’s the flaws that make a character interesting. I suppose the same could be said about us all,’ he added.
The actor is currently in contention for the vacant James Bond role, but his age may work against him if new franchise owner’s Amazon defy convention and cast the secret agent as a younger man.
A TV insider told The Sun: ‘As sensational as it was, Daniel’s exit caused a headache because the death is still fresh in the minds of fans.
‘They can’t just pretend it didn’t happen. So they’re now looking at his story as younger man in a different era.’
