London, Dec 14 (IANS): Actress Judi Dench thinks that her "Cats" co-star Idris Elba "might" become the next James Bond.

During her appearance on "The Graham Norton Show", Dench opened up about Elba getting the role of the iconic spy character, reports dailymail.co.uk.

Asked if Elba can become the seventh 007 agent, the 85-year-old actress said: "I knew he was up for it and in 'Cats' I had the line to him 'You'll never get to Heaviside Layer' but, during rehearsals I said, 'you'll never get to MI6'."

"But I think he might," she added.

Dench will be seen as Old Deuteronomy in Cats, traditionally a wise and beloved elderly male cat.

Talking about the role, she said: "It came as a surprise, but it's still a clapped-out cat."

The star revealed that her acting in the role was inspired by a former pet, a "huge orange bruiser" called Carpet.

"I thought I knew the kind of cat I was, but when I saw the film, I realised I had turned into Carpet, a cat I once had that was a huge orange bruiser," she added.