After four films in service of queen and country, it seems that Craig, Daniel Craig will no longer play Bond, James Bond. According to The Daily Mail, the 48-year-old actor has turned down a monstrous, two-film deal to reprise his role as the super spy and intends to hang up his tux for good.
OK, so maybe this isn’t a huge surprise after Craig suggested that a particularly grisly form of suicide might be preferable to returning as Bond, but he has offered contradictory statements on his interest in continuing with the franchise, and actions speak louder than words. The offer he turned down would reportedly have netted him 68 million pounds, which, in terms of buying power, translates to about $100 million. Gotta love that exchange rate.
As if that weren’t confirmation enough, a film industry source told The Daily Mail “Daniel is done — pure and simple — he told top brass at MGM after Spectre. They threw huge amounts of money at him, but it just wasn’t what he wanted.” He went on to add that Craig “had told people after shooting that this would be his final outing, but the film company still felt he could come around after Spectre if he was offered a money deal.”
While the body of this 007 is scarcely even cold yet, folks have wasted no time in shifting their focus to speculating on Craig’s potential successors. At this point, however, it seems like a one-horse race, as bookies have already stopped taking bets on Tom Hiddleston (The Avengers, Midnight in Paris).
That news will surely disappoint those who’ve been clamoring for Idris Elba to take over the role, but Hiddleston is a very popular young actor, who has the looks and charm to pull off the role. While the character took on a grittier, more aggressive persona under Craig’s stewardship, if Hiddleston is indeed the next Bond, you can expect him to play up the spy’s slick and suave side.
If you’re wondering what Craig might do next, it looks like the only project officially on his slate is an upcoming TV series called Purity, but you can be sure his schedule will fill up fairly quickly now that the James Bond franchise is off his plate.
Stay tuned.
