A Shot in the Dark ; Daniel Craig's Licence to Play Bond Raised Eyebrows Higher Than Roger Moore's but, After an Intriguing Encounter with the Brooding Actor, James Mitchell Found Out Precisely Why He's the Man to Breathe the Menace Back Into 007

Mail on Sunday › October 30, 2006

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Summary

Nobody cares about this film more than I do,' says Daniel Craig, his steely blue eyes flashing with determination. 'I know James Bond is incredibly important to a lot of fans. I want to make it clear that he is incredibly important to me as well.' The stakes are high for Craig's first outing as the world's most famous secret agent. Casino Royale, the 21st Bond movie, marks a new beginning for the lucrative film franchise the second highest-grossing after Star Wars. While it's set in the present day, it shows Bond as a raw recruit, at the beginning of his career as a secret agent. We get to see the fledgling 007 on his first mission, in which he is sent to bankrupt a rogue financier named Le Chiffre in a game of high- stakes poker.

If Craig sounds defensive about his new role, he has good reason to be. Ever since he was announced as the new Bond, the 38-year-old has been subjected to a torrent of abuse. He was branded a 'wuss' for wearing a life jacket on the speedboat that ferried him to his first press conference, described as 'too ugly', and disgruntled fans even set up a (now defunct) website called craignotbond.com. One of the stories he has found most irritating is the claim that he can't drive a manual car. His response is a belligerent, 'I'll take you for a spin right now. Seriously. Right now.' Craig is notoriously wary of being interviewed then again, he probably

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A Shot in the Dark ; Daniel Craig's Licence to Play Bond Raised Eyebrows Higher Than Roger Moore's but, After an Intriguing Encounter with the Brooding Actor, James Mitchell Found Out Precisely Why He's the Man to Breathe the Menace Back Into 007

has good reason to be wary of the press.

Despite spending the past 15 years building a reputation as an intense and powerful leading man, he's far more famous for his lady- killing reputation.

His marriage to actress Fiona Loudon ended after four years (they have a daught...

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