Daniel Craig appears to be having an absolutely marvellous time driving the producers of the James Bond series into fits of pure rage, because hey, if you could get away with that, why wouldn’t you?
It all began after Spectre wrapped, when Craig casually started telling media that he would rather “break glass” and slash his wrists than return to the role of James Bond for another go-around.
MGM’s CEO reportedly “hit the ceiling” and called the actor personally, and soon after, a rumour surfaced that he had been offered a staggering $US 150 million to come back for two more films.
A few months back, during an appearance at the New Yorker Festival, Craig appeared to walk back his previous comments, saying that Bond’s a “good gig”, and that he’d be willing to go back as long as he gets a “kick” out of it.
Since then, however, it seems like there has been very little action, with sources claiming that Craig and MGM remain at a “stalemate”, and it’s causing major headaches for the studio.
Per reports in The Mirror, Craig is more or less “off the grid”, and hasn’t negotiated any deals as yet:
“They have offered a bigger wage deal, and asked about his filming availability to his reps in 2017, but as yet they have not spoken to Daniel. They want Bond 25 out in October 2018, but currently they have no Bond, film dates or knowledge of when that will change. Daniel’s commitment is also a key part of whether Sony Pictures will come in to co-finance the film. So much is hanging in the air – and no one knows.“
A number of other actors have been suggested for the part of Bond, including Tom Hiddleston and Luke Evans, but Craig is a guaranteed money-earner, with Spectre pulling in more than $US 880 million worldwide.
Admittedly, in Craig’s position, it would be a lot of fun to have the power to toy with money men like this, although it would also be nice to know that there’s another Bond in the pipeline at some point.
Source: The Mirror.
Photo: VCG / Getty.
