The James Bond franchise is currently on ice after Daniel Craig parted ways with the famous fictional agent. Last year, Craig put in his final performance in the role with No Time to Die, and the film put a rather definitive ending on his version of the character's story. Bond's fate killed the possibility of bringing back Craig for one last hurrah, for better or for worse.
In a recent interview with the L.A. Times, Craig explained that it was important to put a cap on his Bond's story in such a big way. The actor said that there were basically two major reasons that had him believing that No Time to Die was the right time for him to say goodbye. One factor is that he simply felt like his version of Bond had run its course and that the franchise was due for another reboot, as it had already done many times before.
“One, for the franchise, was that resets start again, which [the franchise] did with me. And I was like, ‘Well, you need to reset again.’ So let’s kill my character off and go find another Bond and go find another story. Start at [age] 23, start at 25, start at 30."
Killing off Craig's Bond not only meant that the franchise would need to be rebooted, but it also shut the door on having him do any more movies in the role. And for Craig, that's another big reason why it had to happen, as he knew that would allow him to fully focus on the next chapter of his career.
“The other was so that I could move on. I don’t want to go back. I suppose I should be so lucky if they were to ask me back, but the fact is I need to move on from it. The sacrifice that he makes in the movie was for love and there’s no greater sacrifice. So it seemed like a good thing to end on.”
Daniel Craig's James Bond Is Gone, But Benoit Blanc Lives On
With Daniel Craig moving on, he has gone all-in on the role of Benoit Blanc. He first played the sleuth in 2019's Knives Out, and after the film found great success, he had signed on along with director Rian Johnson to develop two sequels at Netflix. The first of those sequels, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, will be hitting the streamer on Dec. 23. And while Craig felt James Bond had an expiration date, he's open to make many more Knives Out installments for some time to come, so as long as Johnson is involved.
"If he keeps writing them, I’ll keep doing them," Craig told Variety. "That’s what makes it easy then, he’s such a wonderful writer that it’s there on the page for me to do.”
Johnson also told the outlet, "I’m going to keep making these until Daniel [Craig] blocks me on his phone."
As for Bond, no new actor has yet been cast in the role. James Bond 26 is inevitable, but it could be a while before we find out who Craig's successor will be with no firm plans for the sequel on the board at this time.