Casino Royale Director Martin Campbell Speaks Out on the Future of James Bond

After many pandemic-related delays, it appears the newest James Bond film, No Time to Die, is finally keeping its October release date (at least in the US and the UK). No Time to Die will mark the fifth Bond movie starring Daniel Craig and the first directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga. Craig's previous Bond films were helmed by Martin Campbell (Casino Royale), Marc Forster (Quantum of Solace), and Sam Mendes (Skyfall, Spectre). Recently, Campbell had the chance to chat with PopCulture.com about the history of Bond and also the franchise's future.

"It all changed with [Casino Royale] because it got much grittier and tougher," Campbell explained. "I had his feet on the ground." He went on to say that he misses "the humor" just "a little bit." Those "old Bond elements, just a few of those I slightly miss," he shared. "Daniel's done a wonderful job, but now Bond, I think has become much more serious and internalized. [...] In a way that I do miss some of those moments, I have to say."

PopCulture.com went on to ask if Campbell has any ideas on who might take over for Craig and he admitted he hasn't "got a clue." He added, "There's people that have been in successful TV shows and this, that, and the next thing ... unless you've got your ear to the ground on that stuff" it's hard to know who is being considered.

Earlier this year, there was a lot of speculation about who could play the next 007 with names being thrown around like Tom Hardy, James Norton, Idris Elba, Sam Heughan, Richard Madden, Jack Lowden, Cillian Murphy, and Regé-Jean Page.

"Don't f*ck it up," Daniel Craig previously said on The Tonight Show when asked his advice for the next Bond actor. "It's a beautiful, amazing thing. Leave it better than when you found it."

In addition to Craig, No Time to Die will star Rami Malek, Ralph Fiennes, Ben Whishaw, Naomie Harris, Lashana Lynch, Jeffrey Wright, Lea Seydoux, and Billy Magnussen. Christoph Waltz will be making a return as the villain Blofeld. You can read the official synopsis for No Time to Die below:

"In NO TIME TO DIE, Bond has left active service and is enjoying a tranquil life in Jamaica. His peace is short-lived when his old friend Felix Leiter from the CIA turns up asking for help. The mission to rescue a kidnapped scientist turns out to be far more treacherous than expected, leading Bond onto the trail of a mysterious villain armed with dangerous new technology."

No Time to Die is currently scheduled to hit theaters on October 8th.