Robert Pattinson and Nicholas Hoult Reportedly Screen-Test for Bond

Morning News · Saturday 7 November 2026

Robert Pattinson and Nicholas Hoult were among the actors who screen-tested to play the next James Bond, Variety and Deadline reported overnight, though Amazon MGM Studios has confirmed nothing. Also this morning: new Avengers: Doomsday footage takes us to Latveria, Letitia Wright leads the supernatural horror In Her Shadow, Good Boy’s Ben Leonberg adapts Look Out, Brenton Thwaites and Hannah John-Kamen star in Can I Come In?, Natalia Dyer and Elijah Wood join a 1408 sequel, Glen Powell is reportedly in talks with DC Studios, and Lennie James heads to Portugal for ITV’s Nightswimming.

The News That Matters

Update: Robert Pattinson and Nicholas Hoult reportedly join the final Bond screen tests

• What’s new: Robert Pattinson and Nicholas Hoult screen-tested for the role of James Bond, according to Variety and Deadline, joining the previously reported contenders Callum Turner, Josh O’Connor and Jack Lowden. Deadline’s sources say a fifth test was added at the last minute and that the final group was no bigger than five actors
• What is confirmed: Nothing about casting. Amazon MGM Studios declined to comment to Variety. Denis Villeneuve directs Bond 26 from a script by Steven Knight, with Amy Pascal and David Heyman producing and Nina Gold casting
• Other names in the reports: Variety also says Harry Styles has had discussions about the part and that Theo James has not been ruled out. Bookmakers still make Callum Turner the favourite, but those are betting odds, not a decision
• When we might know: Deadline says most expect a decision by the end of November. Pascal has called an announcement before the end of the year a “good bet”
• UK availability: No actor, title or UK release date confirmed for Bond 26

This is the first time either actor has been named in the race. Until Amazon MGM or the producers announce a name, every contender remains a report. Catch up on the earlier rounds in our 3 November Morning News and Josh O’Connor’s reaction in our 3 November Evening News.

New Avengers: Doomsday footage reveals Doctor Doom’s Latveria

• What happened: A new Jeep commercial, the finale of the carmaker’s year-long tie-in with Marvel Studios, includes footage from Avengers: Doomsday that has not been seen before, Stellantis and GamesRadar+ reported
• What it shows: A first look at Latveria and Doom’s castle, Nightcrawler teleporting, Captain America alongside the Fantastic Four, Doctor Doom and an army of Sentinels. The footage is promotional, so not every shot is confirmed as a scene from the finished film
• Who’s making it: Robert Downey Jr. plays Doctor Doom for directors Anthony and Joe Russo
• UK availability: In UK cinemas from 16 December 2026

Sentinels on screen hint at how hard Marvel is leaning into the X-Men side of the story. For the heroes already lined up against Doom, see our superhero round-up.

Letitia Wright to lead supernatural horror In Her Shadow

• What happened: Letitia Wright will star in and executive produce In Her Shadow, a supernatural horror film from British writer-director Rowan Athale (Gangs of London), Deadline reported
• The story: Wright plays celebrated author Annie Cutter, who learns that her late, estranged sister kept her young daughter locked alone in a basement for five years. Annie adopts the girl, then starts to suspect the lock was there to protect everyone else
• Who’s making it: Producers include Tea Shop Films (Obsession), Public Pictures and Bankside Films (Talk to Me). Bankside is launching world sales ahead of the American Film Market. The film is in pre-production
• UK availability: In pre-production; UK date not yet confirmed

A British director, a British lead and the sales team behind Talk to Me make this one to watch.

Good Boy director Ben Leonberg to adapt horror novella Look Out

• What happened: Ben Leonberg, the filmmaker behind the hit horror Good Boy, will direct and co-write a film of the horror novella Look Out for Republic Pictures, Variety reported. His Good Boy collaborator Alex Cannon co-writes
• The story: Written by Dan Baillie with art by Tim Bradstreet, the 2025 novella follows Oscar, who takes a job as a fire lookout at a remote forest outpost after his divorce and finds a paper with a strange set of rules that promise to keep him safe on his watch
• Who’s making it: Roy Lee and Andrew Childs produce for Vertigo Entertainment, with Zach Studin for AWA
• UK availability: In development; UK date not yet confirmed

A lonely watchtower and a list of rules is the kind of slow-burn set-up that suits Leonberg’s small-scale, high-tension style.

Brenton Thwaites and Hannah John-Kamen star in horror Can I Come In?

• What happened: Brenton Thwaites, Hannah John-Kamen and Henry Thomas have been revealed as the stars of the horror thriller Can I Come In?, which shot quietly in Toronto this year, Deadline reported
• The story: Thwaites plays carpenter Tom, whose nurse wife Katherine (John-Kamen) vanishes after a night shift, until one night she returns to the porch as a broken, frightening shell of herself and asks to be let in
• Who’s making it: Rouzbeh Heydari directs from a script by Jess Mastro and Nick Ruggia. Douglas Smith, Willa Holland and Anja Savcic also star, and The Launch Company starts sales at the American Film Market
• UK availability: UK date not yet confirmed

British star John-Kamen gets a juicy horror role, and the title alone does a lot of the work.

Natalia Dyer and Elijah Wood join a 1408 sequel

• What happened: Spyglass is making a sequel to the 2007 Stephen King adaptation 1408, with Stranger Things star Natalia Dyer leading and Elijah Wood in a supporting role, Variety reported
• Who’s back: Original director Mikael Håfström returns and co-wrote the script with Mark Verheiden. John Cusack and Samuel L. Jackson are expected to return but are still negotiating, according to the report
• The original: Adapted from King’s short story in Everything’s Eventual, 1408 starred Cusack as a sceptical writer who checks into a haunted hotel room. It took more than 130 million dollars worldwide
• UK availability: Untitled sequel in development; UK date not yet confirmed

Character details are under wraps, but Dyer in the lead suggests a new guest for that room rather than a straight continuation of Mike Enslin’s story.

Glen Powell is reportedly in talks with DC Studios for a major role

• What happened: Glen Powell is reportedly in talks with DC Studios for what insider Jeff Sneider describes as a big role requiring a major commitment and multiple options, ComicBookMovie.com reported
• What is confirmed: Nothing. DC Studios has not commented and the role has not been named. Treat this as an unconfirmed report
• The speculation: Fans have long pushed Powell as the DCU’s Batman, but Sneider suggested John Constantine may be the likelier fit, following news that Francis Galluppi is writing a new Constantine film
• UK availability: No project or date confirmed

We covered DC Studios’ new Constantine film in our 5 November Morning News.

Lennie James plays a convicted killer in ITV’s Nightswimming

• What happened: ITV has commissioned Nightswimming, a six-part thriller from Harry and Jack Williams (The Tourist, The Missing), starring Lennie James, Memorable TV and Broadcast reported
• The story: James plays Matthew, who was convicted of murdering his wife and two teenage sons on the night he went for his usual swim, and who returns to the Portuguese seaside town where it happened to investigate the case himself
• Who’s making it: Two Brothers Pictures produces; James is also an executive producer. ITV drama director Polly Hill commissioned it and Banijay Rights handles international sales. Filming starts in Portugal in spring 2027
• UK availability: ITV and ITVX; broadcast date not yet confirmed

It is James’s first ITV drama since The Prisoner in 2009, and the Williams brothers rarely miss with a twisty mystery.

Pattinson or Hoult: which would make the better 007? Tell us below.

Back tonight at 6pm with the Evening News.