The future of the James Bond franchise and Daniel Craig's role in it has been up in the air for awhile now. After the release of Spectre, it seemed like Daniel Craig was ready to hang up his gun and handsome suits for good. When he signed on to join the new Showtime's series Purity, that seemed to be the final nail in the Bond-shaped coffin; it's pretty tough to be on a TV show while filming a major movie franchise, after all. However, according to Showtime CEO David Nevins, Craig's schedule might allow him to do both.
David Nevins was in attendance at the Television Critics Association panels this week and was doing some press for Purity, Showtime's new project based on a novel about the stories of several different people from varied backgrounds. Daniel Craig signed on to be a part of Purity, a commitment that is said to last through 2017. This would make it awfully difficult to be James Bond. According to Deadline, Craig's involvement in Purity does not necessarily interfere with another appearance as James Bond. As David Nevins puts it, it really seems to depend on what the plans for Bond are.
It depends when they do the next James Bond movie, but I don't think it precludes him, is the answer. This will largely be completed during the course of 2017, depending how long they're willing to wait and shoot the next Bond. There might be some breaks somewhere, but (production) will be fairly continuous.
The balls in your court EON Productions. It sounds like all of this depends on if EON Productions can hammer out a plan for the next James Bond. The Craig-led Bond films have done very well at the box office, reaching an all-time high for the entire franchise. It's possible they don't want to give up on Craig just yet and would be willing to wait until production on Purity is finished.
This is all assuming, however, that Daniel Craig even wants to return. The actor once said he'd rather "slit his wrists" than make another one of these movies. Maybe he just needs a break from the franchise, and his time with Purity will leave him refreshed and ready to resume as 007. Plus, it probably wouldn't hurt if EON just threw a ton of money at him.
If Craig doesn't come back, then it'll be time for an all-new James Bond. There have already been plenty of actors rumored to be in the running to star as the iconic spy. Tom Hiddleston's name gets thrown around often and Idris Elba is a close second. Gillian Anderson even started her own campaign to play Jane Bond, which got plenty of support from her fans. After the mixed reaction to Spectre, the James Bond franchise might be in need of a change in direction.
We're bound to find out eventually if Craig is going to be back as James Bond, so stick with CinemaBlend for all your Bond updates.
