A transgender Bond would be cool, says Dominic West

With Daniel Craig set to say goodbye to James Bond after the 25th film, many names are floating as a possible replacement but British actor Dominic West believes it would be "cool" to have a transgender actor play the fictional spy.

Craig will return as Bond for the fifth time in Bond 25, which was earlier set to be directed by Danny Boyle but is now being helmed by Cary Fukunaga.

"Maybe a transgender Bond would be cool," West said in interview with The Sunday Times as quoted by IndieWire.

The actor is currently promoting his role in the BBC's new "Les Miserables" adaptation.

The "Affair" star said he got the idea from his indie film "Colette" where he starred opposite Keira Knightley and Jake Graf, a transgender actor who played a cis male (a person whose gender identity matches the sex that they were assigned at birth) in the movie.

"There's a very cool woman who's the wife of an actor in Colette' who is a captain in the electrical engineers, the highest-ranking transgender soldier in the army, West said.

She's a beautiful blonde girl who could be Bond, yes. That's actually a brilliant idea. They should have a transgender Bond because there are a lot of transgender people in the army. They'd be ideal because they can do everything, he added.

West was referring to Graf's wife, Hannah Winterbourne, a high-ranking officer in the British Army, who transitioned from male to female.

Fans, meanwhile, want Tom Hardy to replace Craig in the next film and West is okay with that choice too.

"I think Tom Hardy could be a good Bond. I'd be happy to see him do it. You need an actor who can put a bit of wiggle into it that's what makes Bond, he said.

Production on Bond 25 kicks off in 2019 with a February 14, 2020 release date in mind.