Bond 23 (which despite rumors to the contrary will NOT be called Carte Blanche), will be directed by Sam Mendes.
While Craig admits he was initially reluctant to take on the role of Bond, he realizes that the diversity of roles he's been playing - ranging from C&A to Spielberg's The Adventures of tintin and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - are a direct results of Her Majesty's top spy.
"It's just what's happening at the moment and it's very exciting for me, because I get the chance to do movies like this, which are way beyond what I would have expected to be doing four or five years ago," says the actor.
At the same time, he knows he has to REALLY hit the gym for his third stint as Bond (following Casino Royale and Quantum of solace), which he's not looking forward to. "It's really boring," Craig sighed. "So boring I can't tell you." It's necessary, he emphasizes, because of the physical beating he took on Quantum of Solace. "Quantum was very physical," he notes. "Probably too physical. We were suffering because there was the writer's strike and we weren't allowed to do rewrites, so the action sequences got juggled together and I personally ended up doing way too much. It was difficult."
Craig and director Sam Mendes have been meeting regularly to work on the script for Bond 23, with Craig expressing, "Both of us said to each other, ‘Let's just try to do the best James Bond film we can.' I know that sounds like a cliche or an obvious thing to say, but I went back and reread the books and watched all the movies and I want to do something that does [Bond] justice... It's two years out of my life and so I kind of need to be part of it... The character is set, in a way. So it's much more about the storytelling."