Daniel Craig and Idris Elba talk Bond at awards show

Daniel Craig and Idris Elba ended a furious public debate over the James Bond franchise by putting on a show of unity at an awards gala in Los Angeles.

Idris has long been tipped to take over from Daniel when the actor eventually steps down from the role of 007, and the rumors reached fever pitch earlier this year (15) in the run-up to the release of new Bond film Spectre.

Daniel, who has played the role in four films, appeared to grow frustrated as he was regularly asked whether Idris could be the first black Bond, and he recently demanded an end to the debate over the Prometheus star's job prospects in a foul-mouthed rant.

"The right person for the job should do the job, and I don't give a f**k what color their skin is," he told Britain's Culture magazine. "It shouldn't be an issue. We should have moved on."

It has now emerged that Daniel and Idris ran into each other at the bar during the recent Governors Awards in Los Angeles, and they teamed up to talk over the future of the Bond franchise.

"He came up to me, looked me in the eyes, grabbed my face and kissed me on the cheek," Idris tells The Hollywood Reporter. "(Daniel said) 'They asked me if you can play Bond. What am I going to say? No?'..."

During the public furor over the next Bond, former 007 Pierce Brosnan backed Idris as the top candidate, but insisted movie bosses will almost certainly avoid casting a black actor in the traditionally white role.

"Anything is possible for sure, but I think he'll be male and he'll be white," Pierce told the Press Association. "There's wonderful black actors out there who could be James Bond, and there's no reason why you cannot have a black James Bond."

He previously said of the front-runners, "Elba would make a good Bond. Colin Salmon also. May the best man get the job, and may Daniel (Craig) bring home the bacon for as long as he wants."