No Time to Die is a 2021 spy film and the 25th in the James Bond series produced by Eon Productions. It stars Daniel Craig in his fifth and final outing as the fictional British MI6 agent James Bond. It is directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga from a screenplay by Neal Purvis, Robert Wade, Fukunaga and Phoebe Waller-Bridge. Léa Seydoux, Ben Whishaw, Naomie Harris, Jeffrey Wright, Christoph Waltz, Rory Kinnear and Ralph Fiennes reprise their roles from previous films, with Rami Malek, Lashana Lynch, Billy Magnussen, Ana de Armas, David Dencik and Dali Benssalah also starring. In this film, Bond, who has left active service with MI6, is recruited by the CIA to rescue a kidnapped scientist, which leads to a showdown with a powerful adversary.
No Time to Die had its world premiere at the Royal Albert Hall in London on 28 September 2021, and was released in cinemas on 30 September 2021 in the United Kingdom and on 8 October 2021 in the United States, after being delayed by Boyle's departure and later by the COVID-19 pandemic. The film received generally positive reviews, with many citing it as a fitting conclusion to Craig’s time as Bond.
A young Madeleine Swann witnesses the murder of her mother by Lyutsifer Safin in a failed attempt to murder her father Mr. White. Madeleine shoots Safin as he searches for her but he survives. Madeleine flees onto a nearby frozen lake and falls through the ice, but Safin rescues her.
After the capture of Ernst Stavro Blofeld, Madeleine is in Matera with James Bond. Spectre assassins ambush Bond when he visits Vesper Lynd's tomb. Though Bond and Madeleine overcome the assassins, Bond believes that Madeleine has betrayed him despite her pleas and leaves her.
Five years later, MI6 scientist Valdo Obruchev is kidnapped from an MI6 laboratory. Approved by M, Obruchev has developed "Project Heracles", a bioweapon containing nanobots that infect like a virus upon touch and are coded to an individual's specific DNA, rendering it lethal to the target but harmless to others. Bond has retired to Jamaica, where he is contacted by CIA agent Felix Leiter with his colleague Logan Ash. Leiter asks for help in tracking down Obruchev but Bond declines. The same evening, Bond encounters an MI6 agent named Nomi who has succeeded him as the new 007. Being informed by Nomi about "Project Heracles", Bond subsequently agrees to help Leiter.
Moneypenny and Q arrange a meeting between Bond and Blofeld in prison to try to locate Obruchev. However Safin visits and coerces Madeleine to infect herself with a nanobot dose to kill Blofeld, as she has been in contact with him since his imprisonment. When Bond encounters Madeleine at Blofeld's prison cell, he touches her and unknowingly infects himself before she leaves. Blofeld confesses to Bond that he staged the ambush at Vesper's tomb to appear as if Madeline had betrayed him. Bond reacts by attacking Blofeld, unintentionally causing the nanobots to infect and kill him.
Bond tracks Madeleine down to her childhood home in Norway. There he learns that Madeleine has a five-year-old daughter named Mathilde, whom she claims is not his. Madeleine confesses to Bond that Safin's parents were murdered by Madeleine's father on Blofeld's orders when Safin was a boy, prompting him to seek revenge on Blofeld and Spectre. Despite having succeeded in killing Blofeld and destroying Spectre, Safin continues his rampage as he, Ash, and their men are on their way to capture Bond, Madeleine and Mathilde. Though Bond manages to kill Ash and several of Safin's men, Safin successfully captures Madeleine and Mathilde.
Bond kills Safin's remaining men before confronting Safin himself; they fight and Safin shoots Bond before infecting him with a vial containing nanobots programmed to kill Madeleine and Mathilde. Despite his injuries, Bond kills Safin and opens the silos. Speaking by radio with Madeleine, Bond tells her he loves her and encourages her to move on without him, and she confirms that Mathilde is his daughter as Bond says goodbye. Bond accepts his fate as the missiles hit the island, destroying the nanobot factory and killing him.
At MI6, M, Moneypenny, Q, Tanner, and Nomi drink in Bond's honour. Madeleine takes Mathilde to Matera and tells her about "a man named Bond, James Bond".
Casting
- Daniel Craig as James Bond:A former MI6 agent who was known as 007 during his service and has been retired for five years at the start of the film. Director Cary Joji Fukunaga compared Bond to a "wounded animal" and described his state of mind as "struggling to deal with his role as a '00' [agent]. The world's changed. The rules of engagement aren't what they used to be. The rules of espionage are darker in this era of asymmetric warfare". Craig stated that the film is "about relationships and family".
- Rami Malek as Lyutsifer Safin:A terrorist leader on a revenge mission against Spectre who later becomes Bond's new adversary by coming to conflict with him and Swann. Producer Barbara Broccoli described the character as "the one that really gets under Bond's skin. He's a nasty piece of work." Malek described the character as someone who considers "himself as a hero almost in the same way that Bond is a hero". Fukunaga described Safin as "more dangerous than anyone [Bond has] ever encountered" and a "hyper-intelligent and worthy adversary".
- Léa Seydoux as Madeleine Swann:A psychiatrist, daughter of Mr. White, and Bond's love interest who assisted him in his mission in the film Spectre. Fukunaga underscored Swann's importance to the film, as her presence allowed him to explore Bond's unresolved trauma stemming from the death of Vesper Lynd in Casino Royale. After seeing the film, Seydoux said, "There's a lot of emotion in this Bond. It's very moving. I bet you're going to cry. When I watched it, I cried, which is weird because I am in it".
- Lashana Lynch as Nomi:A new "00" agent who entered active service some time after Bond's retirement and was assigned the 007 number. Lynch has said that she hopes her character brings a new layer of relatability to the world of espionage: "When you're dealing with a franchise that has been slick for so many years, I wanted to throw a human spin on it—to deal with anxiety and be someone who's figuring it out, completely on her toes".
- Ben Whishaw as Q:MI6's Quartermaster who outfits "00" agents with equipment for use in the field. In the film, Q is revealed to be gay when Moneypenny and Bond interrupt him planning a dinner date. Whishaw considers his version of Q to have ended saying, "I think I'm done now. I've done the three that I was ... contracted to do. So I think that might be it for me".
- Naomie Harris as Eve Moneypenny:M's secretary and Bond's ally. Harris says since Spectre, "Moneypenny has grown up somewhat. I think she still has her soft spot for Bond though, that’s never going to go. But she’s an independent woman with her own life".
- Jeffrey Wright as Felix Leiter:Bond's friend and a CIA field officer. Wright was asked what can be expected from Felix in the film, to which he replied, "Well, I think it's known that Felix pulls James back into the game and away we go from there". While Wright was surprised he was not asked to return in Skyfall and Spectre, he felt Felix's return in No Time to Die "gives more weight" due to his prior absence. Wright said that the film establishes the brotherhood of Bond and Felix, which he described as the "core" of their relationship.
- Christoph Waltz as Ernst Stavro Blofeld:Bond's arch-enemy and foster brother. He is the founder and head of the criminal syndicate Spectre and is now in MI6 custody. Fukunaga explained why Blofeld returns and teased the character's "new role" in the film by saying, "Blofeld is an iconic character in all the Bond films. He's in prison, but he certainly can't be done yet, right? So what could he be doing from in there and what nefarious, sadistic things does he have planned for James Bond and the rest of the world?".
- Ralph Fiennes as Gareth Mallory / M: The head of MI6 and Bond's superior officer.Billy Magnussen as Logan Ash: A CIA agent assigned by Leiter to support Bond in finding Obruchev.
- Ana de Armas as Paloma: A CIA agent assisting Bond. De Armas described her character as "irresponsible" and "bubbly" and playing a key role in Bond's mission.
- David Dencik as Valdo Obruchev: A scientist whose disappearance Bond investigates.
- Rory Kinnear as Bill Tanner: M's chief of staff.
- Dali Benssalah as Primo: A mercenary and an adversary whom Bond first encounters in Matera.
- Lisa-Dorah Sonnet as Mathilde: Bond and Madeleine's five-year-old daughter.
Development of No Time to Die began in early 2016. In March 2017, screenwriters Neal Purvis and Robert Wade—who have worked on every Bond film since The World Is Not Enough (1999)—were approached to write the script by producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson. Sam Mendes stated that he would not return after directing Skyfall and Spectre. Christopher Nolan ruled himself out to direct. By July 2017, Yann Demange, David Mackenzie, and Denis Villeneuve were courted to direct the film. In December 2017, Villeneuve decided against the role due to his commitments to Dune.
In February 2018, Danny Boyle was established as a frontrunner for the directing position. Boyle's original pitch to Broccoli and Wilson saw John Hodge writing a screenplay based on Boyle's idea with Purvis and Wade's version scrapped. Hodge's draft was greenlit, and Boyle was confirmed to direct with a production start date of December 2018. However, Boyle and Hodge left in August 2018 due to creative differences. During Boyle's time as director, a leaked casting sheet described the male leading role as a "cold and charismatic Russian" and the female leading role as a "witty and skillful survivor". Production also sought male supporting roles of Māori descent with "advanced combat skills". It was reported at the time that Boyle's exit was due to the casting of Tomasz Kot as the lead villain; however, Boyle later confirmed the dispute was over the script.
Following Boyle's departure, the release date became contingent on whether the studio could find a replacement within sixty days. Cary Joji Fukunaga was announced as the new director in September 2018. Fukunaga became the first American to direct an Eon Productions Bond film and the first director to receive a writing credit for any version. Fukunaga had been considered for Spectre before Mendes was hired, and afterwards had expressed an interest to Broccoli and Wilson about directing a future Bond film. Linus Sandgren was hired as cinematographer in December 2018.
Purvis and Wade were brought back to start working on a new script with Fukunaga in September 2018. Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace screenwriter Paul Haggis turned in an uncredited rewrite in November 2018, with Scott Z. Burns doing the same in February 2019. At Daniel Craig's request, Phoebe Waller-Bridge provided a script polish in April 2019. Waller-Bridge was hired to revise dialogue, work on character development and add humour to the script. Waller-Bridge is the second female screenwriter credited with writing a Bond film after Johanna Harwood co-wrote Dr. No and From Russia with Love. Barbara Broccoli was questioned about the Me Too movement at the Bond 25 launch event, where she stated that Bond's attitude towards women would move with the times and the films should reflect that. In a separate interview, Waller-Bridge argued that Bond was still relevant and that "he needs to be true to this character", instead suggesting that it was the films which had to grow and evolve, emphasising "the important thing is that the film treats the women properly".
Some concepts changed during development with Fukunaga. An early unrealised idea he considered was to have seen the film take place "inside Bond's head", while being tortured by Ernst Stavro Blofeld in Spectre, up until the end of act two of a three-act structure. Originally, Safin, the villain, and his henchman would wear masks based on Siberian bear-hunting armour. The henchman character was written out before filming, and Fukunaga requested changes to Safin's costume. A new mask based on Noh, a Japanese style of theatre, was introduced as Fukunaga felt that the original mask was dominating the costume.
The film entered production under the working title of Bond 25. The title No Time to Die was announced on 20 August 2019. Broccoli said, "We were struggling to find a title. We wanted a title that wouldn't give away anything but would be understandable, and after you see the movie, have a deeper resonance, because that's often what Fleming titles are all about".
After Spectre, there was speculation that it would be Daniel Craig's final Bond film. Immediately after the film's release, Craig had complained about the rigours of performing the part, saying he would rather "slash wrists" than play Bond again. In May 2016, it was reported that Craig had received a $100 million offer from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to do two more Bond films, but turned it down. In October 2016, Craig denied having made a decision but praised his time in the role, describing it as "the best job in the world doing Bond". He further denied that $150 million was offered to him for the next two instalments. In August 2017, Craig said that the next film would mark his final appearance as Bond on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. He reiterated his position in November 2019 and again in March 2020, following reports that he was in fact considering a reprise of the role one last time. Craig later acknowledged that the physicality of the part had deterred him from returning to the role, having sustained injuries while filming earlier Bond films. With Craig's departure, Broccoli said that No Time to Die would conclude several narratives from Craig's previous Bond films and "come to an emotionally satisfying conclusion".
In December 2018, director Cary Joji Fukunaga said that Ben Whishaw, Naomie Harris, and Ralph Fiennes would all be reprising their roles in the film. Fukunaga also said that Léa Seydoux would be reprising her role as Madeleine Swann, making her the first female lead to appear in successive Bond films. Rory Kinnear returns as Bill Tanner, as does Jeffrey Wright as Felix Leiter. Wright makes his third appearance in the series after Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace and becomes the first actor to play Felix Leiter three times.
Ana de Armas, Dali Benssalah, David Dencik, Lashana Lynch, Billy Magnussen, and Rami Malek were announced as cast members in a live stream, at Ian Fleming's Goldeneye estate in Jamaica. The event was on 25 April 2019 and marked the official start of production. Malek was further announced as playing Safin, the film's villain. Malek revealed in an interview that Safin would not be connected to any religion or ideology.
After the release of Spectre it was reported that Christoph Waltz had signed on to return as Ernst Stavro Blofeld for further Bond films, on the condition that Craig returned as Bond. Despite Craig's definite casting as Bond, Waltz announced in October 2017 that he would not return as Blofeld, but did not give a reason for his departure. Waltz's casting as Blofeld in No Time to Die was not announced at the press launch but was revealed in the trailer in December 2019.
Filming locations included Italy, Jamaica, Norway, the Faroe Islands and London, in addition to Pinewood Studios. In March 2019, production commenced in Nittedal, Norway, with the second unit capturing scenes at a frozen lake. On 28 April 2019, principal photography officially began in Jamaica, including Port Antonio. In May 2019, Daniel Craig sustained an ankle injury whilst filming in Jamaica and subsequently underwent minor surgery. In June 2019, production was further interrupted when a controlled explosion damaged the 007 Stage at Pinewood Studios and left a crew member with minor injuries. Also in June 2019, production went back to Norway to shoot a driving sequence along the Atlantic Ocean Road featuring an Aston Martin V8 Vantage. Aston Martin also confirmed that the DB5, DBS Superleggera, and Valhalla models would feature in the film.
In late June 2019, production moved to the United Kingdom. Scenes featuring Craig, Ralph Fiennes, Naomie Harris and Rory Kinnear were filmed around London, including Whitehall, Senate House and Hammersmith. In July 2019, filming took place in the town of Aviemore and in the surrounding Cairngorms National Park area. Some scenes were also shot at the Ardverikie House Estate and on the banks of Loch Laggan, just outside the park.
In late August 2019, the second unit moved to southern Italy where they began to shoot a chase sequence involving an Aston Martin DB5 through the streets of Matera. In early September 2019, the main production unit, Craig and Léa Seydoux arrived to film scenes inside several production-built sets, as well as further sequences in Maratea and Gravina in Puglia. Scenes were shot in the town of Sapri in southern Italy throughout September. Locations included the town's "midnight canal" and railway station. The city will be referred to as "Civita Lucana" in the film. In late September 2019, scenes were filmed in the Faroe Islands.
The Ministry of Defence in the United Kingdom confirmed that filming took place around the Royal Navy destroyer HMS Dragon and a Royal Air Force C-17 aircraft on undisclosed dates and locations before the COVID-19 pandemic. No weapons were fired. The British Army's Household Cavalry unit was also filmed. Filming of an action sequence with a seaplane took place at CMA CGM’s Kingston Container Terminal in Jamaica. CMA CGM’s container ships, Fort Saint Georges and Fort de France, will also feature.
Ben Whishaw praised Fukunaga's directing work: "It was great and you know what was amazing is that he treated it, or was able to approach it, it felt to me almost as if it were an independent film. You know? And it was quite improvisational... we didn't do many takes". He added, "It was very light. Sometimes quite chaotic, but I'm very excited to see how he's constructed the final film".
Principal photography wrapped on 25 October 2019 at Pinewood Studios with the filming of a chase sequence set in Havana, Cuba. Production had intended to shoot the sequence earlier, but was forced to reschedule when Craig injured his ankle in Jamaica. Further pick-up shots at Pinewood were confirmed by Fukunaga on 20 December 2019.
According to review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 84% of 282 critics have given the film a positive review, with an average rating of 7.4/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "It isn't the sleekest or most daring 007 adventure, but No Time to Die concludes Daniel Craig's franchise tenure in satisfying style." Metacritic assigned the film a weighted average score of 69 out of 100 based on 60 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".
The film has received praise and five-star reviews from many film critics. Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian called it "an epic barnstormer" delivered "with terrific panache" and with "pathos, action, drama, camp comedy, heartbreak, macabre horror, and outrageously silly old-fashioned action". Zach Marsh of FilmSpeak called it one of the greatest films in the series, with particular acclaim for Fukunaga's direction of the action sequences; he said Craig's performance was the best of any Bond performance and deserving of an Academy Award nomination, echoing similar sentiments from critics after the premiere of Casino Royale. Robbie Collin of The Telegraph described it as "extravagantly satisfying", "often very funny" with gadgets "both improbable and outrageous", and that it has been filmed with "gorgeous" cinematography, starting with "a sensationally thrilling and sinister prologue" and ending with a "moving conclusion". Kevin Maher of The Times said: "It's better than good. It's magnificent."
Linda Marric of The Jewish Chronicle wrote: "This is truly everything we expected from Craig's last ever Bond, leaving the actor a chance to pursue other projects away from the burden of having to keep on reprising the same role again and again." Barry Hertz of The Globe and Mail wrote that the film "makes sure that my eyes are following each and every oh-whoa stunt. As well as guaranteeing that I actually care about whether (or, really, how) Bond gets out of this one." Mick LaSalle of the San Francisco Chronicle wrote that the film "takes its place among the best of the entire series", and concluded: "Craig leaves the series in a mammoth, 163-minute extravaganza that audiences will be enjoying for decades. It’s a lovely thing to see." K. Austin Collins of Rolling Stone described the film as being "just fine: sometimes intriguing, sometimes not, sometimes boring, sometimes not", adding: "It's a bit more successful if we think of it instead as a tribute to the Craig era, and to the star himself."
