And so after months, years in fact, of back and forth with rumours galore about whether Daniel Craig would again but on the famous tuxedo for a fifth outing as James Bond we finally have an answer – and it’s going to please a lot of people.
Coy for many months, and indeed during press just yesterday for his new film Logan Lucky, Craig spoke to Stephen Colbert last night on his chat show and delighted the audience by announcing that he was returning once more as James Bond 007. A simple “yes” was all anyone needed from him and that’s exactly what we got but the actor admitted that he had been talking to producers for a few months now to get everything right and now the word has come.
Craig said:
“We’ve been discussing it, we’ve just been trying to figure things out… I always wanted to, I needed a break.”
Initially, after filming on Spectre, Craig had famously said he would rather “slit his own wrists” than play Bond again but the actor said that his words were not best chosen and had finished shooting on the film just a day or two prior to the interview and didn’t give the best answer.
When Colbert asked Craig if this would be his last Bond, Craig said “I think this is it.”
Now we must wait for more news as to who will be directing the film, with a long list of candidates to choose from after Sam Mendes, who directed Skyfall and Spectre. Early word had David Mackenzie (Hell or High Water), Yann Demange (71) and Denis Villeneuve (Arrival) reportedly on the shortlist with Christopher Nolan’s name always mentioned but the latter seems unlikely.
No word yet on casting and whether Christoph Waltz, Lea Seydoux, Ben Whishaw, Naomi Harris and Ralph Fiennes will return but it seems likely that the last three will be back.
Bond 25 is due out in November 2019.
