When it comes to casting, arguably no role in the world garners more attention than that of James Bond. Connery, Brosnan, Craig, each of us has our favourite version of the iconic British spy. Now, following a period of (now confirmed to be successful) internet sleuth work, we have a new face to add to the canon: Patrick Gibson.
007 First Light is the new Bond adventure from Hitman developer IO Interactive, and features a brand-new origin story for the MI6 agent. 30-year-old Gibson will portray the youngest on-screen 007 to date, who is only 26 at the beginning of this story. The Irish actor is by no means a complete unknown, having appeared in TV shows Dexter: Original Sin, Shadow and Bone, and The OA, but is not the superstar casting some might expect when it comes to one of the most enduring roles in all movies.
First Light narrative director Martin Emborg explained the decision not to go with a household name to me on a recent visit to IO’s Copenhagen studio.
“The way that works is less about looking for who becomes our Bond,” Emborg stated. “Who can shoulder this young version of the character? And I think working with big names is a different exercise. It's not finding the character as much as saying, 'Oh, wouldn't it be cool if so-and-so were Bond?' I don't think that was super attractive at any point, actually.”
What Gibson does bring to the role is an excitable confidence and plenty of charm, but with a brashness that suits this inexperienced Bond. “So, very effectively, what he brings to the character is energy," said Emborg.
“He's a very dynamic guy. It's funny, when we're working with the cinematic team, if you're on a very long lens and he's in the foreground, he moves a lot. He also has a great gravity to him. He is someone who can really bring a dramatic performance to life in the room; he just gives you goosebumps immediately. So there's a great kind of balance between it being fun and games and then being able to switch into something that is pretty hardcore serious.”
Meanwhile, classic 007 characters, such as M (Priyanga Burford), Q (Alastair Mackenzie), and Miss Moneypenny (Kiera Lester), also feature in 007 First Light, alongside new ones, including Bond's mentor, John Greenway (Lennie James – Fear the Walking Dead, Save Me), and Miss Roth (Noemie Nakai).
A more famous face did make its way into IO’s production process, though. You can read about how Daniel Craig’s face was put into a Hitman map in order to secure the Bond rights here. You can also check out how Queen Elizabeth II’s passing affected First Light’s development, and the IO CEO’s thoughts on publishing MindsEye following its disastrous launch.
For much more on 007 First Light, make sure to read my extensive preview full of gameplay and story details.
Photo by Bruce Glikas/Getty Images.
Simon Cardy is a Senior Editor at IGN who can mainly be found skulking around open world games, indulging in Korean cinema, or despairing at the state of Tottenham Hotspur and the New York Jets. Follow him on Bluesky at @cardy.bsky.social.