Daniel Craig finally confirms Bond return

In what comes as the least surprising piece of film news this year, Daniel Craig has confirmed that he will indeed be returning as James Bond for a 5th and final (?!) time. Craig had played coy in his response to a question asked as late as yesterday on the subject when he told Boston radio station Magic 106.7 “No decision has been made”. But he finally made the confirmation of his much talked about return on US chat show The Late Show, telling host Stephen Colbert “Yes”, before standing up to shake his hand.

He went on to reveal that he’s known for a “couple of months”. “We’ve been discussing it, we’ve just been trying to figure things out,” he said. “I always wanted to, I needed a break.” Craig was injured during production on the previous installment, Spectre, so he’s certainly earned that break – the star will be earning an astronomical sum, having previously turned down £68m.

Craig is likely not returning for the money, but rather “I just want to go out on a high note, and I can’t wait”, he says. Spectre was perhaps meant to be that high note, but turned out to be a bit of a dud. The next Bond movie, the 25th in the series, is due out in November 2019.