Eon Productions’ James Bond is at the center of the most successful film franchises of all time, dating back to Dr. No back in 1962. A number of actors have played 007, with Daniel Craig recently ending his tenure as the MI6 agent with No Time to Die. And the Knives Out actor recently recalled the funny conversation he had with Barabra Broccoli after realizing James Bond wasn’t a one and done deal. After all, even a dream job has downsides.
Cary Joji Fukunaga’s No Time to Die ended in a way that no James Bond movie ever had: by killing off 007. It was a shocking twist but an emotionally satisfying ending to Daniel Craig’s run as the beloved character. And it turns out that he’s been planning his character’s death since Casino Royale premiered in 2006. As he recently shared to The Sunday Times (opens in new tab) in an interview:
I was driving away from the Berlin premiere of Casino Royale with [producer] Barbara Broccoli. I had genuinely thought I would do one Bond movie, then it would be over. But by then we knew we had a hit on our hands. I realized the enormity of it, so I said to Barbara, ‘How many more? Three? Four?’ She said, ‘Four!’ I said, ‘OK. Then can I kill him off?’ She said, ‘Yes.’
Well, my mind is blown. While not many expected James Bond to be killed off in No Time to Die, it turns out that Daniel Craig requested this very fate well over a decade ago. Clearly he’s good at keeping secrets, as the 54 year-old actor kept this information close to the chest throughout a number of years and various movies. And in the end that story came to fruition in a wildly successful manner.
Daniel Craig’s comments to The Times definitely highlights what a truly difficult job it is to play James Bond throughout multiple titles. The action-heavy franchise requires a ton of travel, long shoots, and stunts/action sequences. And Craig’s initial instincts might have been right, as he did end up suffering a few major injuries throughout his years playing 007.
Perhaps Daniel Craig shouldn’t have been so surprised that Casino Royale wouldn’t be his first and last time portraying James Bond on the big screen. The majority of 007 actors appeared throughout multiple projects, although there were some exceptions like David Neven and George Lazenby. All of the most beloved Bonds have stuck around for multiple years and movies, including Sean Connery, Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan, and Roger Moore.
In the end Daniel Craig would appear in a whopping five movies as James Bond, starting with Casino Royale and ending with No Time to Die. But there was some worry that he’d even be back for the latter project, after famously saying he’d rather slit his wrists than return following Spectre. But his version of 007 was given a great sendoff in this last movie… even if that includes killing him off for the first time.
No Time to Die is available to purchase, and Daniel Craig can be seen in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery streaming Christmas on Netflix. In the meantime, check out the 2023 movie release dates to plan your trips to the theater in the New Year. Just don’t expect to see any James Bond titles on there– it’s unclear when he’ll return and who will play him next.
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