Daniel Craig confirms discussing the plan to kill off his iteration of James Bond in No Time to Die with producer Barbara Broccoli, following the premiere of Casino Royale. In the wake of Pierce Brosnan’s tenure as Agent 007, Craig introduced Bond to a new generation with a gritty, Jason Bourne-esque take on the character in 2006’s Casino Royale. Since then, Craig has played the fictional spy four times, with 2021’s No Time to Die marking the end of five intertwined stories.
Read More: What ‘James Bond’ casting director looks for in new ‘007’?
The 25th film overall in the Bond franchise finally hit theaters on October 8 after a series of delays. In addition to having its release date delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic, No Time to Die encountered a handful of pre-production issues due to a revolving door of creatives and the pressure to adeptly send Craig off into the sunset. Originally, indie filmmaker Yann Demange was set to direct but was relieved of his directorial duties when Danny Boyle pitched an idea with his writing partner John Hodge. Then, just as casting was underway, Boyle and Hodge left the project, and Cary Joji Fukunaga stepped in to direct a new script by writers including Phoebe Waller-Bridge. No Time to Die’s story was seemingly always in flux. However, the one thing that remained constant was the decision to kill Craig’s 007 in the final act.
During a Streaming Room conversation with Variety about No Time to Die, Craig spoke for the first time about the film’s ending. Before detailing the circumstances surrounding Bond’s death, its needed “weight,” and joking about the many ways they considered killing him off, Craig was asked how long he knew he wanted his arc to end in tragedy. No Time to Die is the only Bond movie to see its hero die.
Collider
