Daniel Craig says playing James Bond was “one of the greatest honours” of his life.
The 53-year-old actor played the iconic spy in five James Bond movies between 2006’s ‘Casino Royale’ and ‘No Time To Die’, which is set to be released later this month after several delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
And in footage uncovered from Daniel’s last moment as 007 on the set of the new movie – which featured in a new Apple TV documentary, ‘Being James Bond’ – the actor admitted he has “loved every single second” of playing the screen hero.
In the clip, Daniel can be seen getting choked up as he gives a speech to the crew, and he says: “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 … but I’ve loved every single second of these movies, and especially this one because I’ve got up every morning and I’ve had the chance to work with you guys. And that has been one of the greatest honours of my life.”
Daniel – who also starred as Bond in ‘Quantum of Solace’, ‘Skyfall’, and ‘Spectre’ – previously said he felt "physically and mentally under siege" when he first got the part of 007.
He said: "My personal life was affected by being that famous all of a sudden.
"I used to lock myself in and close the curtains, I was in cloud cuckoo land.
"I was physically and mentally under siege.
"I didn’t like the newfound level of fame. It was Hugh Jackman who helped me to come to terms with it and appreciate it."
The star also read numerous "hate-filled" online comments after it was revealed he was taking over from Pierce Brosnan as the secret agent.
He said: "I went online and stayed up all night and read everything because that is what happens if you do that. And it was tough, really tough - hate-filled.
"And I woke up the following morning I went, ‘F*** it, I know the film is going to be good’. I knew we were doing something really special."
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