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​Daniel Craig Is The Best Bond And Everyone Knows It

​Daniel Craig Is The Best Bond And Everyone Knows It

Both 007 and number one.

James Dawson

James Dawson

There's been a lot of hoo hah in the press lately about who the next James Bond might be - the bets are on but are we ready to lose the best 007 we've ever had? What would the James Bond series even look like without Daniel Craig?!

A lot of people will say that Sean Connery is the best Bond ever - he was the first and he set the tone. And no one can deny that Connery is as cool as a cucumber. But Daniel Craig revolutionised the franchise. We all know it. He's led the best instalment of James Bond films ever and totally redefined James Bond as a character. And, as it's his birthday, I thought I'd tell you why he's so damn good.

This has caused a lot of debate, of course, in the office. One is a stalwart Timothy Dalton fan, for instance. Younger ones prefer Pierce. The smooth talkers Roger Moore. The one Australian we have - George Lazenby.

Here are five reasons that Daniel Craig is the Bond to end all Bonds.

Seal Of Approval

The other James Bonds love him - and think he's the best James Bond ever. Roger Moore has chipped in and said that Daniel Craig is the best.

"I went to a screening of Skyfall and I think that he [Daniel Craig] is the Bond. He's quite brilliant. I thought Casino Royale was tremendous. I thought his action was quite extraordinary -he did more action in the first 30 seconds of the film than I did in 14 years of playing Bond. To me, he looks like a killer. He looks as though he knows what he's doing. I look as though I might cheat at backgammon."

True - Roger Moore does look like he might cheat at board games. But to be fair he was the charming Bond. And Live And Let Die and A View To A Kill were awesome.

Credit: United Artists

Timothy Dalton approves too: "There's a case to be made that Daniel Craig is the best Bond ever," he was quoted as saying.

Sean Connery and Pierce Brosnan also love him as James Bond.

Only George Lazenby disagrees and no one cares what he thinks.

Daniel Craig brought Bond into the 21st century

Pierce Brosnan started off strong in Goldeneye but it was clear that after the Cold War no one really knew what to do with Bond. Die Another Day was just weird - why was Madonna in it? All that fencing. It was a terrible film that just got gimmicky. We like our spies to be less camp than Roger Moore these days - Jason Bourne turned us in a different direction. Daniel Craig made it more serious, more gritty and psychological, harder and cooler.

He played a James Bond who looks a bit worse for wear, a bit jaded, tired and past it - and it works so much better than a jaunty James Bond punning his way through baddies. Daniel Craig has depth and wit - and better gadgets.

Skyfall

A lot of people think that Skyfall is the best ever James Bond film (as well as Casino Royale). It had all the tropes of the classics - the Austin Martin, but it rejuvenated the whole new instalment. The tension between James Bond and Javier Bardem's baddie was electric and terrifying. A lot of the action took place in London - which is unusual for James Bond films, known for their exotic locales, and it was great to see him strutting round the capital. But it was the best film in my opinion because it gave some backstory to James Bond. It showed his childhood home, mentioned his parents and his isolation as a child - all hints as to why he became an assassin. And his bond with M - especially as she died in the film - was intense, touching and memorable. Daniel Craig made James Bond real.

Credit: United Artists

Haters Gonna Hate

Remember when he was first cast? People hated him. He was announced as the new James Bond on a speedboat at the London press conference - wearing a life jacket. People were outraged - James Bond would never wear a life jacket! They didn't like him because he was too short at 5ft 10 and he was blonde! There had never been a blonde James Bond before and people did not like change. (Quick one, in the books Bond is around 5ft 7). Just saying.

Credit: United Artists

But after Casino Royale - one of the best Bond films ever, he turned people around immediately. He was pretty unflappable, too. The haters never got him down - he just did his own thing.

Best Actor

James Bond producers usually choose actors who aren't very well known, so that when they come to the role people see them as James Bond and don't associate them strongly with other roles. Sean Connery, Pierce Brosnan and Timothy Dalton had worked for years but never hit the big time - Connery went on to have an amazing career, but let's be honest, he isn't a great actor. He's Scottish in every role. Even when he's playing a Spaniard/Egyptian in Highlander, he's still got an Edinburgh accent. And what did Roger Moore or George Lazenby do after Bond? Cameos! Daniel Craig has starred in some cool films like Munich, Layer Cake and The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo and he was even a Stormtrooper in the new Star Wars!

Dalton was the only theatre actor and RSC stalwart who has been in some good movies, but, as for being Bond, Craig's changed the dynamic and has become the greatest ever.

Featured Image Credit: United Artists