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Daniel Craig’s run as James Bond lasted for fifteen years beginning withCasino Royalein 2006 andNo Time to Diein 2021. While there was initial doubt about the actor filling in Pierce Brosnan’s shoes, he soon proved everyone wrong with his physicality and charm. He is also responsible for the highest-grossingJames Bondfilm in history –Skyfall.The film made over $1.1 million at the box office as it received unending praise from all.
Of course, his run as James Bond was nothing short of impressive and successful. However, he could have lost it all if Steven Spielberg did not step in at the right time. That’s right, Daniel Craig actually contemplated giving up the role at one point.
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DuringDaniel Craig’s BAFTA: A Life in Picture,the actor opened up about how he initially thought about saying no to playing James Bond. He was fully convinced that the franchise had gotten their eyes set on the wrong guy, even though he was flattered by the offer.
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Daniel Craigthought they were auditioning other actors and just wanted to see how he would fit in the picture. Luckily, producerBarbara Broccoliwas not ready to give up on Craig.
I did, yeah. I just said I can’t I mean, I think you got the wrong guy. Thank you, flattering, but I think you’ve got the wrong guy. Maybe you’re auditioning lots of people and you’re sort of trying to get a picture of it, but I didn’t realise – Barbara had already made up her mind. You know, if you know Barbara, that means she’s made up her mind.
On top of all this, Craig’s friends had his back. They helped him list out the pros and cons of taking the job and ultimately the good outnumbered the bad.
I don’t know where my brain was at but I have some good friends and they were just like, I mean literally made a list of… pros and cons. And the pros outweighed it. It was one of my closest friends who just said ‘this doesn’t happen to people, just does not happen.’ He said ‘you’re gonna just regret this for the rest of your life if you don’t do this.
These weren’t the only ones who were pushing Craig to say yes to the role. DirectorSteven Spielberg, too, wouldn’t take no for an answer.
Steven Spielberg Pushed Daniel Craig Towards James Bond
Craig was filmingMunichwith Spielberg, a historical drama following the Munich massacre at the 1972 Summer Olympics. It was during this time that he was offered the role of James Bond and was on the fence about it.
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Spielberg, as well as his co-starEric Bana, would be in Craig’s ear, pushing him to sign the contract. During his interview withVanity Fairwhere he broke down his iconic characters, Bana revealed an anecdote from the set ofMunichwhere Spielberg ever so subtly put James Bond in Craig’s mind.
While filming a scene where Bana and Craig are storming a private villa, Spielberg decided to play the Bond theme on a Bluetooth speaker. Of course, when “Cut!”was yelled, Craig was absolutely perplexed.
Steven and I were getting in his ear like, ‘Dude, you have to play James Bond.’ There’s a scene in Munich where Daniel and I are storming a private villa in the middle of the night. It was right at the point where Daniel had to make a decision about whether he was gonna play Bond or not. Daniel and I have to jump over a fence and creep through the grass and approach this house.
Steven got a Bluetooth speaker out and on ‘Action!’ he played the Bond theme during the take. We climb the fence to the James Bond theme, came through the bushes, and were running down the road whilst the music was playing. Then [Steven] yelled ‘Cut!’ and Daniel was like, ‘You b*stard! What are you doing?!’ It was so much. It was a good challenge trying to keep a straight face.
It looks like it took quite a few people to get Craig to say yes to the role. Without them, the actor probably might have ended up passing out on a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
Daniel Craig’sJames Bondfilms are available to watch on Prime Video.Casino Royaleis available on Paramount+ via Showtime.
Mishkaat Khan
Senior Writer
Articles Published :2257
A connoisseur of all things horror, fantasy, and the occasional chick flick, Mishkaat has been penning pieces for FandomWire since 2022. She started off as an intern and has worked her way up to a Senior Writer with over 2000 articles to her name.Outside of entertainment, she has also written well-researched medical content as a freelance writer and has experience in social media management.When not writing, you can find her relaxing with a romance novel and a tall glass of iced coffee in her hand or watching re-runs of ‘Supernatural’ and ‘The Office.’
