UPDATE: Aug. 16 ― After playing “coy” (as he put it) with various media outlets, Daniel Craig has finally put all the speculation surrounding his return as James Bond to rest. That is, he confirmed he will be back to play the iconic spy at least one more time.
The actor shared the news during an appearance on “The Late Show,” telling host Stephen Colbert, “I have been doing interviews all day and people have been asking me and I think I’ve been rather coy. But I kind of felt like if I was going to speak the truth I should speak truth to you.”
So there you have it.
PREVIOUSLY:
Speculation surrounding Daniel Craig’s possible return as James Bond continues.
“I hate to burst the bubble on that one,” Craig said during an interview with WMMR’s “Preston & Steve” Tuesday. “There’s no decision made just yet.”
“I’m not trying to be coy with you, but there’s a lot of noise out there at the moment and I’m trying to stay out of it,” he added.
The revelation comes after The New York Times reported Craig would indeed be reprising his role as the iconic 007. Sources told the outlet that Craig’s return was a “done deal.” Turns out, the news came as a surprise to the actor.
“There’s a lot of nonsense being said,” Craig said, “and I’m just like—I read the papers, like, ‘I said, what?’ It’s all news to me.”
The “Spectre” star’s comments echo what he said during a Tuesday interview with Morning Magic 106.7.
“No decision has been made at the moment,” he said. “I’m not, like, holding out for more money or doing anything like that. It’s just all very personal decisions to be made at the moment.”
He continued, saying that despite the fact no official decision has been made, he would “in theory love to do it.” That’s a far cry from that time in October 2015 when he said he’d rather “slash my wrists” then come back for one more film in the franchise. (In his defense, he did later say he’d “miss it terribly.”)
So while we still don’t know whether we’ll get a new Bond or not, we do know the next film in the spy franchise will hit theaters in North America on Nov. 8, 2019.
Neal Purvis and Robert Wade, who wrote the past six Bond movies, will write the script for the upcoming installment, which Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli will produce, The New York Times reports.
Further details about the next film, including cast members and plot points, remain sparse, though rumors are swirling that Cara Delevingne is in line to become a Bond girl.
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