The James Bond franchise has descended into a kind of mania of late.

The world is scrambling to crown the new 007, favours flitting from actor to actor; all while it still remains officially undecided whether Daniel Craig will even be leaving the franchise in the first place.

Tom Hiddleston, however, has become somewhat of a mainstay of people's lists; yet the actor himself is keen to temper the hype currently surrounding him. Appearing on a panel at Wizard World Philadelphia, Hiddleston responded to Bond rumours (via ComicBook.com); "I don't think that announcement is coming, but I am very gratified to hear the enthusiasm. Your guess is as good as mine, to be honest."

That certainly makes it sound as if those reports of the actor meeting with Bond producers are unfounded; then again, Hiddleston is best known for playing the trickster god Loki. So, maybe he's just deep in character for Thor: Ragnarok and is getting a lot of pleasure from pulling everyone's leg on this.

Honestly, it does seem incredibly unlikely Hiddleston will be snapping up the role; as pointed out by Sam Mendes, who has definitely left the franchise, Bond actors are never the expected choice.



Bond on screen through the years Show all 8 1 /8 Bond on screen through the years Bond on screen through the years Barry Nelson The first ever Bond on screen, Nelson played James Bond in 1954 in Climax! Casino Royale Hulton Archive/Getty Images Bond on screen through the years Sean Connery The Scottish actor first played Bond in the 1962 'Dr. No'. He portrayed the secret agent from 1962 until 1967, although he reprised the role twice: once in 1971 for 'Diamonds Are Forever' and again in 1983 in 'Never Say Never Again' Hulton Archive/Getty Images Bond on screen through the years David Niven Niven was 007 the time of one film; the 1967 'Casino Royale' Roy Jones/Hulton Archive/Getty Images Bond on screen through the years George Lazenby Lazenby played Bond in the 1969 'On Her Majesty's Secret Service' Larry Ellis/Hulton Archive/Getty Images Bond on screen through the years Roger Moore Moore's Bond started with 'Live and Let Die', the 1973 film directed by Guy Hamilton. He was the face of 007 for 12 years, when his tenure finished with the 1985 'A View to a Kill' Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images Bond on screen through the years Timothy Dalton Timothy Dalton was James Bond in 'The Living Daylights' and 'Licence to Kill' Mychele Daniau/AFP/Getty Images Bond on screen through the years Pierce Brosnan Brosnan took over the role in 1995 when he played the spy in 'GoldenEye'. He played in a total of four films, and his last time playing 007 was in 2002 'Die Another Day' Hulton Archive/Getty Images Bond on screen through the years Daniel Craig Daniel Craig was announced as the new James Bond in 2005. His first appearance as the secret agent was in the 2006 'Casino Royale'. He has since starred as Bond in 'Quantum of Solace' and 'Skyfall'. He is expected to appear once again on screen in 2015 for 'Bond 24' Greg Williams/Getty Images



It would really mark a first in the series for taking on an established actor, especially one with several franchises already on his hands; Daniel Craig came to Bond fairly untethered by his past experience, a relative unknown who was actually quite the unpopular choice at first, before he won over audiences with his bravado performance in Casino Royale.

Indeed, anyone looking for a likely candidate would perhaps be better off with Jamie Bell, following rumours the Billy Elliot star has met with producers to discuss the possibility of being Craig's heir to the role.