Daniel Craig hung up his 007 suit after five successful installments in the James Bond franchise. His final Bond film, No Time to Die, was a fitting farewell for the Knives Out actor and received critical acclaim. The film collected $774 million worldwide at the box office and even won an Oscar for Best Original Song for Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell.
In No Time to Die, Craig’s James Bond faced off against a ruthless terrorist villain, Lyutsifer Safin, played by Rami Malek. Off-screen, it appeared that Craig and Malek shared a great friendship as evident from their fun interviews.
Rami Malek Revealed An Intimate Moment Between Him And Daniel Craig
Daniel Craig appeared in an episode of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and engaged in a discussion covering various topics, including his roles in movies like Knives Out and No Time to Die. While discussing his James Bond role, Stephen Colbert brought up Rami Malek‘s role as the antagonist in the film. Craig shared that the franchise was lucky to have the Oscar-winning actor as the villain. Colbert revealed that Malek had previously appeared on the show and talked about the Logan Lucky actor.
The host went on to play a clip from the Bohemian Rhapsody actor’s earlier appearance where he revealed an unexpected kiss that transpired between him and Craig. In the clip, Malek recalled that both actors were brainstorming a scene for hours and they finally cracked the right idea. Malek shared that at that moment, Craig picked him up and kissed him. The Mr. Robot actor shared on The Late Show:
“We had this scene that was a very complicated scene, and we were rehearsing for it with our terrific director, Cary Fukunaga. And we were sitting at a table over hours, just batting about ideas back and forth. And we finally cracked this really challenging scene. And, you know, he grabbed me and picked me up. And I can’t tell who initiated the next moment, if it was him or I, but a kiss transpired between the two of us. And I’m gonna say that Daniel initiated it.”
Following the impromptu kiss, Malek humorously asked Craig, “So, does this make me a bond girl?”. The Oppenheimer actor also mentioned that Daniel Craig was his favorite Bond.
Daniel Craig’s Response To Rami Malek’s Story
Stephen Colbert asked Daniel Craig about Rami Malek’s account of the events. Colbert also added that Malek’s question regarding his status as a Bond girl was a valid question. The Glass Onion actor did not regret the intimacy between the actors and described it as a lovely moment. Craig further confessed on The Late Show:
“I kiss all my leading men. I think it just breaks the ice.”
The two actors also joked about the kissing scene in an interview with Entertainment Weekly. When asked about the story that Rami Malek shared on live television, Craig humorously responded to EW:
“Listen, this story’s had legs about kissing Rami; I’ve just been trying to give it more legs. I don’t know if it’s on social media. I haven’t got social media, but I said I used to kiss Rami after the end of every scene. It’s like no big deal. God almighty. Just spreading the love.”
Malek also contributed to the conversation with a witty remark:
“I would just rush through scenes just to get to that moment that you would get kissed.”
It’s unclear about the other leading men whom the Casino Royale actor has kissed. However, Craig seems to be a very charming and lovable personality. No Time to Die is now available for streaming on Prime Video.
