BRITISH actor Mike Dickman has spoken about being linked with the vacant 007 role for the first time.
The rising star, 40, is building an impressive portfolio after swapping a high-flying corporate career in the sports industry for his acting passion.
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In just a few short years, he’s had a cameo role in blockbuster Barbie, landed a supporting role in psychological thriller Secrets, which is released on Amazon on August 19, and will also feature prominently in upcoming series Gandhi – the first Indian series to premiere at the prestigious Toronto International Film Festival.
Earlier this year, bookies even listed him as a surprise frontrunner to replace Daniel Craig as Bond, along with household names like Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Tom Hardy and Henry Cavill.
Speaking exclusively to The Sun, affable Mike says: “It’s crazy flattering to be mentioned in a bracket with all of those tremendous actors who have got a lot more experience than I do.
“I don’t know what to say, Dan. I mean, for all I know, you could be working for Blofeld [laughs].
“No, it’s been really interesting to see what they end up doing with the project. It’s obviously a whole rebirth of an incredible franchise, isn’t it?”
While Amazon MGM Studios may end up looking elsewhere for the iconic suave spy, there’s no doubting Mike’s star is on the rise.
But the humble actor is all too aware productions are a collaborative effort and is effusive in his praise of his fellow cast and crew, complimenting Charlotte Jackson Colman, the former Sky Sports presenter who plays the lead role of Sammy in Secrets, and Gandhi lead Pratik Gandhi, who he calls “absolutely fantastic”.
The latter project is a retelling of political and philanthropic powerhouse Mahatma Gandhi’s incredible life story, which was famously brought to the big screen by Sir Ben Kingsley in the 1982 epic.
In the new series, Mike plays racist Captain Harry Sparks who tried to put a stop to Gandhi’s time in South Africa.
Originally, producers had intended to cast an Akrikaans speaking actor, but were impressed by Mike’s ability to capture the accent. It’s role that could further elevate his growing status in the industry.
He says: “You never know in this industry if you’re ever going to break out.
“I think it’s really hard to predict what it’s going to be as well. I’m lucky I haven’t experienced this personally yet, but I know people that have a whole body of work on TV or film, and then you think your role is going to be something and then decisions are made in the edit.
“The storyline changes or whatever and suddenly your role is not quite what you thought it was going to be.”
He continues: “I’m extremely humbled, I guess, by some of the feedback I’ve had from the production team on Gandhi. And I think from my conversations with Hansal [Mehta, director], I think he sees it as quite a key role in the telling of the story.
“I’m sure that he’s done a brilliant job with the series. I mean, Pratik Gandhi, who’s playing Gandhi, was absolutely fantastic to act opposite, because it’s such an iconic kind of character acting role.
“I know people might roll their eyes when you say things like this, but it is so true, like those actors that can do so much without doing anything, he’s one of those. You just sort of standing there opposite him in a scene and you’re like, oh, he’s got a real presence. So that was that was really cool to witness.”
Before then, viewers can watch Mike, who is in a relationship with Heather Mills, flex is acting chops in Secrets as Robert, the partner of bereaved daughter Sammy [Jackson Colman].
The film begins with a brutal murder and follows Sammy as she delve back into a dark past she’d left behind.
He says: “She starts witnessing a chain of events that she can’t quite understand. She’s not quite sure what’s going on or why it’s happening.
“She doesn’t have much support around her. She’s come home, back to her hometown after the passing of her mother. And I suppose I attempt to be a kind of a rock and a support for her in the situation and and try and help her work out what’s going on, because neither of us are aware of what mysterious events may have occurred in the past or what may be happening now, and what might be happening after that.”
Director Chris Norton was a powerhouse on the set, infecting those around him with his enthusiasm and keeping morale up even when they were shooting in breath-stopping sub zero temperatures.
Norton has a cult following in America thanks to his previous Amazon film My Month With Mrs. Potter.
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“I think he’s able to craft a really interesting nuanced story that people can immerse themselves in and get involved in that’s not obvious,” says Mike. “It has plenty of twists and turns, but you really end up empathising with the characters.
Highlighting Chris’s commitment, Mike says: “We had one night where we filmed towards the end of the movie, we filmed a scene that took place in the middle of a forest in Surrey. And it was minus four, it was like the coldest day in January last year.
“And everybody else is a bit delirious. We’ve gone numb by this stage. And Chris is rolling around in flip flops and a T-shirt just going, ‘right, what’s next? What’s next? OK, I need to get that shot again’.”
There’s not much time to dwell on Secrets’ release though, as Mike is already hard at work on an adaptation of William Corlett’s novel, Now and Then by Matt Weston.
The relationship-driven coming-of-age drama has got Mike excited and he believes it’s a film that will stand the test of time.
He says: “It’s about a kid at school who goes through a particular experience and struggles to kind of reconcile it and adapt his relationships in later life as a result.
“We’re hoping that will end up being a sort of a quintessential kind of British drama and one that people can come back to as well.”
There’s little doubt that Mike will be on screen for a long time to come.
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