Daniel Craig has now been playing James Bond for 15 years, the longest run any single actor has ever had on the character. (Even if that tenure was artificially extended, somewhat, by the long delays that have beset Craig’s final Bond flick, October’s No Time To Die.) And while the actor has occasionally expressed a bit of ambivalence with the relentless shooting schedules, endless rounds of promotion, and generally grueling ordeal of being James Bond—most notably in an interview he gave in the immediate aftermath of filming 2015’s Spectre, in which he declared he’d “rather break this glass and slash my wrists” than return to the part of 007—he does seem to be genuinely game about giving his take on the character a proper send-off now.
Craig alluded to some of those previous comments in a video that’s making the rounds online today, in which he bids what appears to be a legitimately tearful farewell to the cast and crew who worked with him on his five Bond movies. “A lot of people here worked on five pictures with me, and I know there’s a lot of things said about what I think about these films or all of those, whatever,” Craig said, presumably alluding to all that previously mentioned “no fucks given” chat. But, he continues, “I’ve loved every single second of these movies, and especially this one, because I’ve gotten up every morning and I’ve had the chance to work with you guys. And that has been one of the greatest honors of my life.”
Per Deadline, the video was reportedly shot back in 2019, i.e., when filming on No Time To Die was actually finished. (As a reminder, the movie was already getting bounced around the schedule even before COVID became a factor, as MGM sought to secure a release date that would give the film the sort of opening a movie this expensive requires in order to make money.) No Time To Die is currently scheduled to arrive in theaters (finally!) on October 8.