Why Glass Onion’s Dave Bautista Says Daniel Craig Was The ‘Complete Opposite’ Of Himself Filming Compared To Spectre

Dave Bautista in Spectre, Daniel Craig in Glass Onion
(Image credit: MGM/Netflix)

Dave Bautista is one of the suspects in the forthcoming Knives Out sequel, Glass Onion. This will mark the second time the actor has gone up against Daniel Craig, as the two previously faced off in the James Bond film Spectre. While one might assume that this means the two actors know each other quite well, Bautista says Craig is like a different person on the set of the new Rian Johnson movie.

When Daniel Craig finished making Spectre he famously said he’d rather slash his writs than play James Bond again. While he eventually did return to the role, it’s clear that making that movie was stressful and there things about playing Bond Craig didn't like. Speaking with EW, Dave Bautista says that it was obvious to him that Daniel Craig wasn’t exactly having a good time on the set of the James Bond film. Even from the outside he could see the pressure of the franchise on him…

He was really put through it on Bonds. You could feel that he was under a lot of pressure. He didn't seem like the happiest person on Bond, but on Glass Onion, it was the complete opposite.

It sounds like making Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, was a much better experience for Daniel Craig. If he wasn’t the happiest person on the set of Spectre, then he was having a lot more fun making Glass Onion. While Craig is still playing the lead role in a movie that is now officially a franchise with a third Knives Out Mystery already planned, it’s just not the same as James Bond.

And it sounds like Daniel Craig having more fun on Glass Onion means that everybody else did too. Dave Bautista says that another way working on Glass Onion was the opposite of Spectre was the way that the entire cast, including Craig, spent time together. He continues…

He was just so much fun, and he was always smiling and happy and interacted a lot more. On Spectre, there wasn't a whole lot of interaction with the whole cast. But Glass Onion was the complete opposite. We were always together. So I got to know him better as a person and actually see him do his thing.

Part of the reason the cast was always together may have had more to do with the structure of the film itself. James Bond movies follow the lead character from place to place, occasionally leaving behind some characters and meeting new ones. Being a whodunit, it only makes sense for the Glass Onion cast to be together. The structure requires that all the suspects remain in a finite space, while the detective attempts to figure out what happened.  

Whatever the situation, it sounds like the people making the new Knives Out had a good time doing it, and that usually translates to a movie that is just as much fun to watch. Based on the early reactions to Glass Onion, we're in for another exciting mystery.

Dirk Libbey
Content Producer/Theme Park Beat

CinemaBlend’s resident theme park junkie and amateur Disney historian, Dirk began writing for CinemaBlend as a freelancer in 2015 before joining the site full-time in 2018. He has previously held positions as a Staff Writer and Games Editor, but has more recently transformed his true passion into his job as the head of the site's Theme Park section. He has previously done freelance work for various gaming and technology sites. Prior to starting his second career as a writer he worked for 12 years in sales for various companies within the consumer electronics industry. He has a degree in political science from the University of California, Davis.  Is an armchair Imagineer, Epcot Stan, Future Club 33 Member.