Daniel Craig is set to appear for the last time as James Bond in No Time To Die. The film which will be released on the 2nd of April, 2020 will mark the end of a brilliant era. Craig is hanging his guns after having appeared in five Bond films. This puts him third behind Sean Connery and Roger Moore who both appeared in 7 Bond films.
As we wait for a new actor to be cast, we can’t help but wonder who has been the greatest Bond of all time. Or do we really have to wonder? Maybe Daniel Craig was the best actor to ever play Bond. Sean Connery might have something to say about this but here are our reasons why Craig was the better spy.
The Most Memorable Action Scenes
When you think about the best ever action scenes in Bond movies, one of the first ones that come to mind is Bond fighting on top of a train at the beginning of Skyfall. And to make it even more spectacular, he gets shot and falls into a river. Is he dead? Well, no. How amazing would it have been if a scene like this closed the movie? Fans would be left wondering whether Bond is alive or dead.
Unlike Sean Connery’s Bond, Craig’s Bond has always preferred doing instead of talking. Even Roger Moore praised Craig for his action scenes after watching Skyfall, saying: “I thought his action was quite extraordinary. He did more action in the first 30 seconds of the film than I did in 14 years of playing Bond.”
He’s Been The Most Human Of Them All
Most of the other Bonds before Craig did plenty of things that could never happen in real life. Their stunts were a bit exaggerated and no injury they took ever affected them. Connery even wrapped a handkerchief around a bullet wound once and forgot about it. Compare that to Craig who temporarily lost his ability to shoot straight after being accidentally shot by Moneypenny.
Brosnan and Connery were quite unrealistic with their charms, given that it always took one or two (sometimes cringy) pickup lines to get a woman to fall madly in love with them. Craig’s Bond was different. He was more like us. In Casino Royale, we see him planning to quit his job to be with his lover Vesper Lynd. And then he gets played, just like us.
A Better Driver
Bond movies are littered with plenty of good car chase scenes. 007 has to escape or chase villains on a frequent basis. And no one has been better on the wheel than Craig’s Bond. The trailer for No Time To Die already showed us that there will be more spectacular car chase scenes.
Quantum Of Solace opened with one of the best car chase scenes of all time. We saw Bond speeding and dodging gunfire on his way to Siena, Italy as he was being chased by two Alfa Romeo 159s. And in Spectre, there were the chase scenes with Blofeld’s henchman Mr. Hinx in the streets of Rome. The midnight dash to save Vesper in Casino Royale was quite memorable too.
All The Other Bond Actors Think He’s Great
When all the other people who have done it before you give you a stamp of approval, then there’s no doubt that you are good. Timothy Dalton once gave his opinion about Craig, saying: “There’s a case to be made that Daniel Craig is the best Bond ever.”
Moore told Time Magazine: “I think he is the ultimate Bond.” Connery and Brosnan referred to Craig as “fantastic” and “magnificent” respectively. In fact, Craig as Bond has been so good that Brosnan admitted to The Guardian that his James Bond simply wasn’t good enough.
He’s Always Looked The Part
Craig looks too good in a suit. Spectre’s opening sequence where we see him walking on a roof while holding a gun is proof enough. And about Craig, the late Roger Moore once said: “To me, he looks like a killer. He looks as though he knows what he’s doing. I look as though I might cheat at backgammon.” That’s one of the best Bond actors, acknowledging that Bond looks more like the fictional spy than him.
Connery—who was once named the Sexiest Man Alive when he was younger—apparently looked too good that even Bond creator Ian Fleming didn’t like him. The late author quoted saying: ““He’s not what I envisioned of James Bond looks. I’m looking for Commander Bond and not an overgrown stunt-man.”
Mr. Longevity
Daniel Craig has been James Bond for 14 years now. That’s longer than Sean Connery (9 years) and Roger Moore (12 years). Sean Connery retired as Bond in 1971 before returning in 1983 in the Non-Eon film Never Say Never Again. which is normally not acknowledged as a proper Bond movie. But when it comes to actors who have held down the role for the longest consecutive years, Craig is the don.
The fact that he wasn’t fired even after saying he’d rather slit his wrists than play Bond again shows how valuable he is. Compare this to Brosnan who was getting ready to do another Bond film after Die Another Day then he got the “You are no longer needed” call from the Broccoli family.
Best On-Screen Chemistry With M
It was a sad moment when Judi Dench’s M died. She seemed like one of the characters that modern Bond movies couldn’t do without. And in Spectre, her absence was clearly felt. Dench first appeared as M in GoldenEye and even when Brosnan was dismissed and the franchise was rebooted, she was kept in the role.
While her chemistry with Brosnan’s Bond wasn’t that bad, it was her chemistry with Craig’s Bond that made her more likable. 90% of Skyfall’s plot was even about Bond and M’s relationship. They were like mother and son, with M always reprimanding Bond whenever he did something silly.
King Of The Box Office
According to Forbes, Daniel Craig’s Bond movies have grossed $3. 6 billion. These figures will increase even further with the upcoming film. Craig can also boast of having starred in the highest-grossing Bond movie of all time (Skyfall), which earned $1,218,849,723 and made a profit of $910,526,981.
To make it even better, no Bond movie with Craig in the lead has made less than $700 million yet no Bond movie before Craig made more than $700 million. People love to watch Craig as Bond. He’s simply a money-maker and its not surprising that the producers have kept him around for so long.
Proved Critics Wrong
There was total outrage when Craig was announced as the next Bond back in 2005. Some didn’t like the fact that he was blonde. No other Bond actor had been blonde. Others said he simply didn’t have the looks whereas others tried to be more professional by saying that he had no good movies prior to his casting.
With such intense hatred, Craig could have chosen to step away from the role. But he didn’t. He put his focus into filming and Casino Royale turned out to be one of the best Bond movies ever made. Since then, not a single word of criticism has gone his way. Even when movies like Quantum Of Solace were panned for poor plots, Craig’s performance was always praised.
He Has Consumed More Shaken And Non-Stirred Drinks
In short, Craig’s Bond knows how to have a good time. In Fleming’s novels, Bond was always drinking and Craig’s Bond does pretty much the same. He has consumed more units of alcohol (85) than any other Bond. He also drinks the most liquor per film on average (21 units).
In Casino Royale, he had 26 drinks while in Spectre, he had 25. No other Bond film has seen such figures. It’s quite surprising that he never gets drunk. Scientists should study his kidney and liver so that more drunk-resistant clones can be made.
