‘No Time to Die’ director addresses possible James Bond return

In hindsight, Daniel Craig’s tenure as the legendary 007 might have been full of ups and downs, but the actor and director Cary Fukunaga did a wonderful job of concluding the story in No Time to Die.

Craig’s final installment somewhat polarized audiences, but received generally positive reviews from critics, and even made it to WGTC’s best films of 2021.

The two creatives recently sat down with The Playlist to talk about the film and the future of the spy on Her Majesty’s secret service. While Craig is pretty adamant about ending his run here and now, Fukunaga doesn’t exactly rule out a return with the next iteration of 007.

“It’s hard to say. As difficult as it was, it’s also one of the highlights of my working career. I think part of that is due to the fact, as Daniel said, we worked with such amazing people and I just did a project between then and now, and it’s really great to have that comparison and remembering every single member of that crew loved what they did. Do you know what I mean? They really put their all and you saw that in the work that came back and the passion and the dedication. Whether it was props or scenic or whatever, every single crew member. And you don’t really get that. I can’t really think of any other filmmaking franchise that has that kind of esprit de corps.”

The filmmaker expanded on that last comment, noting that the franchise is a point of pride for an entire nation. Fukunaga says he’s “pretty tired” after making No Time to Die, but he might entertain the possibility of returning at some point in the future:

“And that goes to the entire nation when you’re shooting in the UK,” He continues. “Everyone loves the fact that they love their Bond. And so to say, “Oh, I’d never do it again.” It’s impossible to say that because right now, I’m obviously pretty tired from the last one still, but who knows in the future? It’s a very special thing to be a part of.”

Unlike Sam Mendes, who got to work on two Bond films through 2012’s Skyfall and 2015’s Spectre, this was Fukunaga’s first go at the long-running action franchise. All things considered, then, I think it’s safe to say that he ended up doing a winning job, so let’s hope that the producers at Universal also share our sentiments when it comes to any future installments.