Daniel Craig feels ‘strung out’ after 15 year stint as James Bond-Danni Scott-Entertainment – Metro

Daniel Craig confessed he overworked himself while starring as James Bond (Picture: Col Pics/Everett/REX/Shutterstock)

Taking on one of the most iconic roles in British cinema can’t be easy but Daniel Craig really made a mark when he became James Bond.

The Queer actor played 007 for a whopping 15 years — the longest run of anyone in the beloved Ian Fleming role.

After saying farewell in 2021 with No Time To Die, the question of who could possibly take over has loomed large in the acting world, with plenty of big names in the running.

While the focus is on who could measure up to Daniel, the 56-year-old star has confessed the stint left him ‘exhausted’ and ‘strung out’.

Daniel believes he overworked himself in the early days of his career as when those lucrative roles started to come through, he didn’t want to turn anything down.

‘Most actors are out of work for large chunks so you take your job offers – but they left me empty,’ he shared with The Times. ‘Then, bottom line, I got paid.’

He’s now taking on a far smaller workload (Picture: REUTERS)

He’s been playing 007 for 15 years (Picture: Jay Maidment/Eon/Danjaq/Sony/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock)

In the six years between Casino Royale and Skyfall, Daniel appeared in 12 separate projects, not including the three Bond films.

Daniel continued: ‘I was so exhausted at the end of a Bond it would take me six months to recover emotionally. I always had the attitude that life must come first and, when work came first for a while, it strung me out.’

By comparison, since Spectre in 2015, he has taken on just seven feature films plus his final Bond appearance.

This includes the popular Knives Out franchise, a Stormtrooper cameo in Star Wars, and new William S. Burroughs adaptation, Queer.

While the work was intense, he has no regrets about signing on for Bond and insisted he still cares about the franchise.

No Time To Die marks Daniel’s final outing as the famous spy (Picture: Nicola Dove/Metro Goldwyn Mayer Pictures via AP)

Many thought 2012’s Skyfall would be Daniel’s farewell (Picture: Col Pics/Everett/REX/Shutterstock)

Daniel added: ‘I keep saying I don’t, because people ask me all the time and I’m an ornery, grumpy old man, so I say I don’t give a s***. But I care about it deeply – deeply.’

However, he realises that the fate of 007 is no longer in his hands, trusting producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G Wilson to take the franchise where it needs to go.

The Golden Compass icon added that while he cares, it was no longer his choice or his ‘problem’ to solve.

Recently, Daniel also spoke about 2008’s Quantum of Solace, saying it should have never been made in the first place.

Speaking on the Awards Chatter podcast, he recalled: ‘[Quantum of Solace] was the difficult second album — [it was] a f*****g nightmare.

‘[Film writer and producer] Paul Haggis did a pass on the script. Then he went off and joined the picket line and we didn’t have writers.’

Daniel’s replacement is yet to be announced (Picture: Danjaq/Eon Productions/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock)

Whoever lands the role has a lot to live up to (Picture: Jay Maidment/Eon/Danjaq/Sony/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock)

Daniel was referring to the 2007-08 Writers Guild of America strike, which affected the production of numerous films and TV shows for three months.

‘We should never have started production,’ he explained. ‘I ended up writing a lot of that film, which I probably shouldn’t say.

‘There are some amazing stunt sequences in it but it just didn’t quite work. The storytelling wasn’t there. That’s a lesson — starting a movie without a script is not a good idea.’

Despite his hesitations around the follow-up film, it has a respectable 63% on Rotten Tomatoes and was well-received critically at the time.

Since his departure, there has been a flurry of speculation over who could step into his shoes as well as who could be the next Bond girl.

The most hotly tipped 007 names include Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Rege-Jean Page and James Norton.

Got a story?

If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@metro.co.uk, calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.

Entertainment – MetroRead More