Benedict Cumberbatch has very slyly responded to the rumors that he might be in contention to play the next James Bond. There's been a lot of talk about the future of the James Bond franchise over the past two years as well, following the release of director Sam Mendes' Spectre, and Daniel Craig's comments that it would likely be his last movie as the character. However, Craig's comments have not proven to be as concrete as they had initially appeared, with the actor being rumored to be both returning and not returning for the 007 role in the next, currently untitled 25th Bond Film, off and on ever since Spectre's theatrical release.

So as Craig's involvement has remained an uncertainty, fans and industry insiders have been busy speculating and theorizing about who could take over. And as such, almost every popular British actor has been rumored to be attached to the role, including fan-favorite choices like Idris Elba or Tom Hardy. Also appearing on that list, though, is an actor who's more than familiar with taking on iconic franchise roles over the years - Benedict Cumberbatch.

Despite it looking more and more like Daniel Craig will be returning for Bond 25, Cumberbatch was still asked recently if he'd be taking on the role after Craig, while appearing at this weekend's London Film & Comic Con. According to Empire's Emma Thrower, all Cumberbatch had to say in response to the question was a very coy, "No Comment."

Cumberbatch's comments come after a busy few weeks for Bond fans, when not only was Daniel Craig rumored to have finally signed on for another film, but Bond 25 was also given a release date. Filmmakers such as Denis Villeneuve (Blade Runner 2049) and Yann Demange ('71) were also said to be in talks to direct the film, with all signs pointing towards Bond 25 finally starting to come together, after almost two full years' worth of waiting on the part of fans.

However, even if Craig does return for Bond 25, the actor's time in the franchise will still likely be coming to an end sometime in the next few years, and slo it's easy to assume that the producers will already be considering frontrunners to take on the role after Craig. Considering both Cumberbatch's enormous talents as an actor and his popularity on the big screen, he'd be an understandable choice for the studio to go with after Craig. So it's not necessarily surprising then, that Cumberbatch's comments here - thanks to their vagueness - manage to neither dispel or confirm the possibility of him taking on the iconic role.

Next: James Bond Desperately Needs New Writers

Source: Twitter