James Bond: Bad news for THIS frontrunner to replace Daniel Craig – as his odds CRASH

Daniel Craig is expected to make his final appearance as the agent in the upcoming blockbuster, after which a new actor will take the reigns.

Tom Hardy and James Norton had been long-time favourites with bookmakers, before Idris Elba became the subject of renewed speculation that he could be the next star to land the gig.

Now, even though Elba has distanced himself from the rumours, Norton’s odds have nosedived.

The Grantchester and Happy Valley star has seen his odds dip right down to 12/1 with SkyBet, a far cry from his previous position as joint favourite.

Hardy is back in pole position with the company, with 11/10 odds.

Elba is a hairline behind on 9/4; his odds drifting slightly since the initial hysteria earlier this month.

Tom Hiddleston has had renewed interest, now cut back down to 6/1, while Sam Heughan is still very much near the top of the list on 8/1.

Behind Norton, Jack Huston is on 18/1, Aidan Turner is out to 20/1, and Cillian Murphy, Sam Claflin and Michael Fassbender are all on 25/1.

Former Hollyoaks and Strictly Come Dancing star Ricky Whittle can be backed at 33/1, while Dan Stevens, Ed Skrein, Henry Cavill and Jamie Bell are all on 40/1.

With Ladbrokes, ‘Any Female’ can be backed at 12/1.

Back to the as-yet-untitled Bond 25, it was confirmed earlier this week that Boyle is no longer slated to direct.

“Michael G. Wilson, Barbara Broccoli and Daniel Craig today announced that due to creative differences Danny Boyle has decided to no longer direct Bond 25,” a tweet from the official James Bond account read.

It has since been claimed that Boyle and Craig clashed over his casting choices.

An insider told the Telegraph: “Craig has a big say in all the casting decisions. None of the Bond girls have been chosen without his say so.

“For example he chose Eva Green to be the Bond girl when it came to the final four for Casino Royale and that has been the case for all the Bond girls he has worked with.

“It was telling the producers put his [Craig’s] name on their release saying that Boyle had been sacked.

“I have heard that they wanted to bring that Cold War element in but update it to the modern day.”

The source added: “Danny Boyle was in for that. That wasn’t the problem. The problem came in when they were making the final decisions about casting pre-production.”

News on Boyle’s replacement has not yet been announced, although it has been rumoured that the script has been canned.

The film had been given a late 2019 release date, although it remains to be seen if it will now be delayed.