Daniel Craig May Have One More Bond In Him
Wednesday, April 5, 2017 at 12:45PM Robert here! After Daniel Craig told reporters during his press tour for the latest James Bond film that he'd rather "break [a] glass and slash my wrists" than play the superspy again it was generally agreed upon that Spectre would be his last Bond outing. But before you put away your blue swimsuit in sorrow, rumors from sources connected to Barbara Broccoli who I've been assured is the producer of the Bond franchise and NOT a character from a John Waters movie say that she is close to convincing Craig to do one more film as the debonair secret agent.
According to Page Six, the scribblings on a bathroom stall of news sources, Broccoli is on the verge of convincing Craig after she helped produce his off-Broadway Othello which was very well received...
The sources also claim that she can't stand the current rumored next Bond, former Mr. Taylor Swift, Tom Hiddleston.
As someone who is writing this post partially as an excuse to look up photos of Craig emerging from the ocean in that swimsuit, I am torn about this development. He has put in a lot of great work as Bond and his performances were very much a part of the franchise – and arguable genre – defining successes that were Casino Royale and Skyfall. He brought a gritty realism to Bond that been lacking in former shellacked interpretations of the spy that ushered the franchise into the 21st century without compromising its classic appeal. I joke about the swimsuit, but that too marked a new era of Bond: one where the classic sexual chemistry went both ways, which was instrumental to the success of the new films.
That being said, if Craig is done with Bond it's probably best to let him hang up the bowtie rather than be treated to the possibly phoned-in performance of an actor who has lost the spark for the role. Hiddleston, for all his self-congratulatory Darfur ramblings, is a magnetic presence on the screen and just based on his work in The Night Manager alone has shown he has the chops.
Whether or not Craig will return is still nothing but rumor and speculation. In the meantime, what do you think about Craig taking another spin? Are you fond of his interpretation, or ready for another actor to take the role?
Reader Comments (27)
I wanna black Bond after Craig. Of course they need to be a European national.
If Craig coming back keeps us from having to do another origin story, I'm fine. As long as Hiddleston takes off where Bond left and not an origin story, I'm happy.
Though Idris Elba would be better.
I do not want a black Bond. Let's keep to the author's choice. AND I am not a bigot.
OK I give... if you want a black Bond, I want a white Uncle Remus.
Fuck off K.
I'm all for whatever casting decision is needed to un-win Sam Smith the Oscar for the last Bond film.
I'm not that interested in the Bond franchise. I thought Daniel Craig was okay, although a little pouty and dull.
What reinvigorated the Bond series was the casting of Judi Dench as M. To keep the momentum going, they need a comparable new M, not an old boy network upperclass male. Emma Thompson perhaps?
No, to Tom Hiddleston as Bond. His recent brush with fame/celebrity showed he doesn't display good sense in those situations, and made him an object of ridicule. The celebrity of Bond would chew him up and spit him out.
Idris Elba seems more unpreturbable and has said he wouldn't chase after the role of Bond. He has the charisma, skills, and seems to have the workday practicality necessary for a job that is a long haul of hard work, followed by endless promotional duties.
You are too constant in your retorts /3rtful. I have only seen your comments a few times since i began being involved on this blog site. I must go back in time and read some earlier comments and see if you are always this filthy!!!
It was good to see Barbara Broccoli to stick to her guns and convince Craig to have more round as Bond. Plus, I'm glad she chose not to have Hiddleston as Bond as he just doesn't look right as Bond and definitely was right to call him out on his time with that succubus bitch Taylor Swift.
Idris Elba. Accept no substitutes.
I'd be up for one more with Craig. Let him go out in style. Something better than Spectre.
If not - Idris Elba could be great...but he's 44 already (the age Craig was in his third Bond film). Would that matter?
Or, for someone younger - how about Riz Ahmed?
A black or other minority ethnic James Bond would be great, but whoever is cast, he should still exude a certain upper-class supercilliousness befitting a product of Eton. I haven't yet seen either Elba or Ahmed play that type of character yet, which is not to say it's not in their respective ranges (Elba pleasantly surprised me with his convincing portrayal of Nelson Mandela a few years back, demonstrating he can do much more than the 'cockney hard man').
Also, I do wonder whether casting an actor, like Ahmed, from an Islamic background might be recipe for controversy seeing how Bond is in large part defined by his hard-drinking and womanising lifestyle.
I Daniel come back, I hope Bond 25 will be his swan song.
After Daniel, there's only two options: IDRIS ELBA (age 44, could work as Bond at the age of 55 = 4 movies?) and HENRY CAVILL (age 33; after Idris out, he will be with 42/44. Four movies for him to)
Marco: I understand your points. Maybe casting Ahmed would slightly reconfigure who Bond is - e.g. not as hard-drinking or as womanising! After all, Craig's Bond and Brosnan's Bond are different from each other in many respects - as are Connery's and Moore's, etc. In many ways, Ahmed fits the bill. He's handsome, charismatic, British, and I think he could do both the romance and the action. I also think he could do the superciliousness - and he's got the educational background (he's an Oxford University graduate) that could help him in the role. I also think he could be a warm and very popular Bond - like Craig, but also his own take on the role.
Another thought: Jamie Bell? He was being talked about a few months back. Not sure if he wants it, but I think he'd be an interesting choice.
Idris Elba would've been perfect, but I imagine if they recast they'll be looking for someone fairly young that they can wring a number of movies out of.
My vote would go to David Oyelowo, who would be a more Brosnan-y choice after the Dalton-Connery style of the recent movies. Hiddleston would be fine, but like other choices that get bandied around a little (Damien Lewis, Tom Hardy, Henry Cavill) isn't particularly imaginative and would not be particularly distinguishable from Craig. My runner-up choice would actually be Dan Stevens - The Guest and Legion have shown how high his charisma can run, and he's a convincing killer in the former. He's suitably younger, and he feels like a particularly hot talent that could imprint himself on the franchise like younger Daniel Craig did.
Daniel Craig seemed a bit over it in the last film (oh man I've forgotten what it was called already) so having him back might not be what's best for the franchise.
It has to be Idris Elba. Please Bond Gods, please please please.
If not, I think Aiden Turner would be a good shout.
Or Matthew Goode?
I think Craig should definitively quit, but I'm glad to hear Ms. Broccoli can't stand Hiddleston.
Why would anyone be interested in a non-white actor playing "James Bond"? Please explain this to me and, while you're at it, explain why you're not clamoring for Hayley Atwell to take on the role as well.
I'm skeptical about Daniel Craig coming back. He kinda sleepwalked through Spectre and I would hate to see him end his run on a sour note.
As for who I think should occupy the role, I would go with Luke Evans. His scene-stealing work in Beauty and the Beast as Gaston showed that he can be suave and charismatic. Also, he can easily pull off the action given his expertise in films like Fast 6 and the Hobbit films.
Also, Jack O'Connell would be a more outside the box choice even if he's on the younger side.
Everyone: I think Idris Elba would have been a great choice a decade ago, but he's probably the next M now, not the next Bond. Not the worst consolation prize in the world, just ask Clive Owen, our very own 006. And, yes, that I tossed out a reference to the movie I just referenced in 2017 is SUPER LAME. (Yes, Owen says he was never offered it. Does anyone buy that?)
Paul Outlaw: Well, there are also people who kind of want to see Minority and Female versions of The Doctor.
Why would anyone be interested in a non-white actor playing "James Bond"? Please explain this to me and, while you're at it, explain why you're not clamoring for Hayley Atwell to take on the role as well.
Craig is our first blond Bond. Dench is our first female M. Harris is our first black Moneypenny. Understandable for someone of us the curiosity with playing with Bond's race if not his sexuality which is more taboo thing because he's suppose to be a ladies man. I think Skyfall had a homo erotic joke. A black bond isn't as important as getting another nonwhite Best Actress winner in our lifetimes. But why not darling? Black Brits are sexy. They have the virtue of being black then you add on the accent and I could kill whole villages in the middle of nowhere just to impress them.
Sadly they replaced Dench with Ralph Fiennes so we're not going to be getting anything interesting out of that change of power. This entire franchise is such a snooze.
Tom Hiddleston is like the male Anne Hathaway. Decent actor, but I find him insufferable in his public appearances.
I think I want to throw up with a certain blogger's comment here!!!
The next Bond is not likely to be anyone we know by name today, especially if Craig comes back fro the next one and the decision gets kicked down the road. Signing on to play James Bond usually involved agreeing to be in 4-5 movies, which would be prohibitively expensive for any kind of name actor. It's likely going to go to someone really young and eager to raise his profile.
As for diversity, I think a cool solution would be to have a spinoff series about another MI-6 agent (008 or something) who can be a woman or racial minority which will give progressive minded people what they want, keep the traditionalists happy because 007 himself won't be breaking the mold, and also give the studio an expansion to their franchise. A win, win, win.
Hugh Jackman!!! I know he is a little long in the tooth but nobody looks better in a tuxedo.