As the resident James Bond expert here at CinemaBlend, I’d like to think I’m pretty tuned into what’s going on with the adventures of 007. It’s part of why I can tell you that the 2025 movie schedule does not have plans to debut the long-awaited James Bond 26, while also feeling sad every time I do so. That’s a good time for someone like me to learn something new, and I’m really surprised that I somehow didn’t know (or forgot) about a No Time to Die scene that I didn’t know was all Daniel Craig.
Now, of course, we all know about Mr. Craig’s history with stunt-based injury from throughout his tenure in the tuxedo. But as you’ll see in the video shown below, Special Effects Supervisor and James Bond legend Chris Corbould lays out that those sick donuts the Aston Martin did in the pre-credits sequence didn’t require a stunt driver:
On the surface, this sounds like a simpler feat than one would imagine. I mean, who among us hasn’t done a donut, or at least knows someone who has? But to literally burn rubber with an Aston Martin DB5, with cameras, equipment and crew members present, and accompanied by Léa Seydoux in the passenger’s seat, is an achievement that very few could probably claim to have done.
As it turns out, I have a really good reason to feel a bit sheepish about not knowing this fact, and it’s not because I pride myself on being a 00-know it all. Back in 2021, I was given the honor of attending the home video junket for Daniel Craig’s James Bond swan song on behalf of CinemaBlend.
The event saw me speak with Mr. Corbould himself, which allowed us to discuss No Time to Die’s explosive Guinness World Record set by the picture’s bittersweet finale. That part of the trip came just before I was given a thrilling ride in a Range Rover, as a stunt driver recreated a sequence from the final Daniel Craig James Bond movie, and through some rather muddy conditions.
Now you’d think that a stunning driving stunt would have entered the conversation that day, with all of these variables present. Alas, it did not. However, learning this fun fact as we’re waiting to learn which actor will be licensed to kill next feels like another appetizer that teases what’s next.
It’s like thinking you’ve run out of Bollinger champagne, only to find out that you have a bottle chilled in the console of your car. Ok, so that’s more of a Goldeneye reference than anything else, but you get the analogy. (Also, even 007 knows not to drink and drive, so let’s stay smart here, ok?)
Here’s hoping we’ll hear more promising news before the year is out, as Bond 26’s rumored release window will be here before we know it. Although I’d gladly buy drinks for whomever can release the first trailer for Daniel Craig’s new project, Wake Up Dead Man: a Knives Out Mystery; which is due to hit Netflix at some point in 2025.