The character of James Bond has been a part of pop culture for nearly seventy years, in both books and movies. He has been immortalized in dozens of films, and the character has become synonymous with smooth style and calculating cool.

With Daniel Craig, the current James Bond, about to retire his portrayal of the character, many different actors have begun to throw their hats in the ring for the chance to play one of the cinema’s most popular spies. Recently, a surprising contender entered the ring. But he has stated that he is very serious about his pitch for the role.

Back in action… James Bond and Madeleine Swann in the new poster for #NoTimeToDie

A post shared by James Bond 007 (@007) on Feb 21, 2020 at 8:00am PST

In the fifties, author Ian Fleming began writing and publishing a series of books about a fictional British superspy named James Bond, also known as Agent 007. Instantly, film producers saw the concept as being incredibly marketable and began making plans to bring Bond to life onscreen.

Dr. No, released in 1962, was the first real Bond film, although there was an earlier television adaptation of Fleming’s work that featured an actor named Barry Neilson in the role of Bond. Sean Connery portrayed Bond in Dr. No and was a huge success as the character. He went on to play Bond in seven films.

Following Connery’s legendary tenure as Bond, a series of other actors took over the reins. David Niven played Bond in one film, George Lazenby portrayed the character in one film, Roger Moore played Bond in a total of seven films (and is considered by many to be one of the best), Timothy Dalton played Bond in two films, and Pierce Brosnan took over the role for four movies.

Today’s Bond is Daniel Craig, who made his first appearance in 2005’s Casino Royale. He can next be seen as Agent 007 in the upcoming film: No Time to Die. 

With the upcoming No Time to Die confirmed to be Craig’s final outing as Bond, everyone is speculating about who could possibly portray the superspy next. Some likely contenders include Tom Hiddleston and Robert Pattinson.

However, there is one unlikely candidate: Ramy Youssef. Born in 1991 in Queens, New York, Youssef’s parents are Egyptian. He grew up in a very religious, Islamic household.

Youssef studied acting in college and quickly displayed a flair for standup comedy. After gaining fame with appearances on TV shows like See Dad Run and The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Youssef scored his very own Hulu series in April 2019.

His show, Ramy, is a semi-autobiographical series that details the life of a young Muslim American born to immigrant parents. He has received critical acclaim for his work in the series, and the second season is set to debut in the spring.

A post shared by ramy youssef (@ramy) on Jan 18, 2020 at 9:17am PST

There’s no doubt that Youssef’s life has changed a great deal since the debut of his series Ramy. The actor recently won a Golden Globe Award for his work in the show and is quickly becoming the hottest new talent around.

In fact, Youssef recently spoke out and said that he’s being offered a lot of new roles. He even told Page Six: “I’m going to be the new Bond. The Bond people called me. They were like, ‘Dude, let’s go!’ And I was like, ‘Let’s do it!'”

A post shared by ramy youssef (@ramy) on Feb 15, 2020 at 11:05am PST

Of course, his remarks were publicized instantly, with many news outlets claiming that the comedian was only joking about being offered the role of Bond. However, Youssef posted a link on his Instagram account with the caption “this is messed up, I wasn’t joking.”

Youssef has undeniable talent so he shouldn’t be dismissed for the role. Plus, the character could use a little more diversity in its portrayal.

While the jury is out on whether or not he could potentially nail the role of Bond, they will certainly need someone to fill the iconic role — and Youssef is definitely a star on the rise.