AceShowbiz - Idris Elba has ruled himself out of the running to take over from Daniel Craig as the next James Bond.

The "Thor" actor, 45, has been at the centre of feverish speculation over his chances of becoming 007 after the director Antoine Fuqua claimed Bond producer Barbara Broccoli wanted to cast a black actor in the role and suggested Idris as a likely candidate.

The Londoner then stirred up the rumours on social media, as well as by playing the Bond theme during a DJ set - but he has now apparently come clean and said he won't be playing the suave superspy.

At the U.K. premiere of his directorial debut "Yardie" on Tuesday, August 21, when the star was asked by a reporter from breakfast news show "Good Morning Britain" whether he will be the next 007, he simply replied, "No".

He had previously teased fans on Twitter by writing, "My name's Elba, Idris Elba," a reference to one of Bond's most famous catchphrases. At the "Yardie" screening Idris joked about another one of 007's iconic lines, saying he liked a Martini "stir-fried" when asked if he would like the drink shaken, like Bond, or stirred.

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. pic.twitter.com/0Thl116eAd

— James Bond (@007) August 21, 2018

Daniel Craig is only signed up for one more outing as 007, and is believed to be ready to leave the role after more than a decade spying for Queen and country.

However, production on what is likely to be his final Bond film was thrown into turmoil on Tuesday when its director Danny Boyle quit. A statement posted on the official James Bond Twitter account revealed his departure was due to "creative differences" between the filmmaker and producers Barbara, and Michael G. Wilson.

Danny and his long-time collaborator, the screenwriter John Hodge, had been working on a script with filming scheduled to begin in December.