Daniel Craig Reflects On James Bond Fame After Casino Royale Release

Former James Bond actor Daniel Craig reflects on how he dealt with his newfound fame following the release of Casino Royale in 2006. After the release of Die Another Day in 2002, Craig was chosen as Pierce Brosnan’s replacement, a decision that was initially met with a great deal of skepticism and unhappiness. Martin Campbell’s Casino Royale was an undeniable hit critically and commercially, however, and Craig would play 007 four more times, bidding farewell to the franchise with the explosive No Time To Die ending in 2021.

During a recent interview with The New Yorker, Craig reflects on the period of his life immediately following the release of Casino Royale. “I was really rocked by it,” Craig recalls, “Really rocked.” Craig recalls the pendulum swing from nobody thinking he was right for the part to everyone loving Casino Royale, using the experience to speak more broadly about his loss of privacy and anonymity:

F-cking disaster. I don’t think I could have coped with it all [if I had been nineteen]. I think I would’ve fallen apart in all the obvious ways. Even at thirty-five or whatever, I dived into a really big, deep, dark hole. Went to Mexico City, did a lot of drugs. If only. No, I locked myself away and didn’t come out of my house and I felt paranoid. I mean, with good reason […]

Before the first movie, it was, like, He’s really terrible. After the first movie, it was, like, He’s really good. And then the interest in you is so overwhelming. You feel like you’ll never go out again. You’ll never be able to socialize again.

I think anybody who becomes famous who’s got half a heart, I think you kind of mourn your previous life. Don’t get me wrong. There’s lots of lovely things that go along with it, but the freedom that you had as a semi-anonymous human being has gone. And then you realize you’ve got to get on with life. You’ve just got to get on with it.

The conversation then turns to Craig’s departure from the Bond franchise and his subsequent projects, such as the Knives Out franchise, in which he plays Southern detective Benoit Blanc, and Luca Guadagnino’s Queer. Check out his comment below:

In a way, what I would say is I was suddenly kind of free. When I first started doing Bond, I felt like I had to work in between doing Bond. And I found that at the end of the day I was just too exhausted. It’s two years out of your life and you go, Oh, go and do another project to freshen myself up. And all I found was I couldn’t put any energy into it. So with varying degrees of success, I kind of did these movies that were, like, O.K.

I then started chilling out a bit and just went, I’m good. I’ve got money. I don’t need to do anything. Take a break, have a family, do all the things that you need to do. And then, suddenly, I’m not doing Bond anymore, and someone like Rian Johnson comes to me and goes, “Do you want to do something now?” I laughed out loud when I read it, and I was, like, does he really want me to do it? And he went, “Yeah, I want you to do it.” I said, “You want me to do a Southern accent?” And he went, “Yep.”

What James Bond Meant For Daniel Craig’s Career

Craig’s Non-Bond Roles Explained

Prior to Casino Royale, Craig had been a working actor for more than a decade, but he had relatively few major movies under his belt, and fewer still as a leading man. Craig’s most notable movies before his Bond tenure saw him mostly playing supporting roles, and these include the likes of Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001), Road To Perdition (2002), and Munich (2005). His most notable leading role was in Matthew Vaughn’s Layer Cake (2004).

Casino Royale obviously changed the course of his career and made him a household name, but, as Craig himself suggests above, the Bond franchise did affect his non-007 career. Immediately after Casino Royale, Craig appears in The Golden Compass (2007) and a small film called Flashbacks of a Fool (2008) before he’s right back into Bond with Quantum of Solace (2008). His other notable titles that occur between Bond movies include Defiance (2008), The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011), and Logan Lucky (2017).

Our Take On Daniel Craig’s Post-Bond Career

Craig’s Future Roles Could Be Far More Interesting

Craig was a fantastic Bond, and Skyfall (2012) and Casino Royale aren’t just highlights of his tenure as 007, but of the franchise as a whole. Despite the success and popularity of Craig’s time as Bond, it’s exciting that he’s now left the role behind him. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo remains a highlight of Craig’s career, and there could now be more roles like this on the horizon.

Queer reviews may be somewhat mixed, but Craig’s acting work in the film is outstanding. The Knives Out franchise, too, is beloved, and Wake Up Dead Man, the third installment, is sure to be a viewership hit for Netflix. Even if not all of his upcoming movies are successful, however, it’s interesting to see this new phase of Craig’s career after James Bond, and it seems like some surprising movies and characters are probably on the horizon.

Source: The New Yorker

James Bond

The James Bond franchise follows the adventures of British secret agent 007 as he combats global threats. With a license to kill, Bond faces off against various villains and criminal organizations, employing high-tech gadgets, espionage, and charm. The series spans multiple films, featuring exotic locations, thrilling action sequences, and memorable characters. Bond’s mission to protect the world and uphold justice remains central, making the franchise an enduring icon in the spy genre.

Upcoming Films

James Bond 26

First TV Show

Fleming: The Man Who Would be Bond

First Episode Air Date

January 29, 2014

TV Show(s)

Fleming: The Man Who Would be Bond

Character(s)

James Bond , M (James Bond) , Q (James Bond) , Moneypenny , Felix Leiter , Jaws , Goldfinger

Video Game(s)

GoldenEye 007 , The World Is Not Enough , 007: Nightfire , James Bond 007: Everything or Nothing , Quantum of Solace , James Bond 007: From Russia with Love , James Bond 007: Blood Stone , GoldenEye 007 Remake , 007: Agent Under Fire

Summary

The James Bond franchise centers on the fictional British Secret Service agent James Bond, also known by his code number 007. Created by writer Ian Fleming in 1953, Bond has been featured in novels, films, television, radio, comics, and video games. The film series, produced by Eon Productions, is one of the longest-running and highest-grossing franchises in history, known for its blend of espionage, action, and sophisticated style.

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