Daniel Craig may be a James Bond star now, but one of the things he really wanted to be when he was growing up was a superhero like Superman or Spider-Man. Craig has played arguably the most famous character in cinema history for the past decade and a half. With his Bond-playing days nearing their end, however, Craig is ready to wax nostalgic about what he wanted to play as child, perhaps hinting at what's he's interested in playing in the future.
While not a superhero franchise, the James Bond franchise has been around for decades, generally assuming the position as the most memorable role for each actor who has played him, much in the same way superhero roles are what certain actors are remembered for. To some degree, Craig is tired of being known for only the one role, so he's retiring the mantle once No Time to Die receives its coronavirus-delayed release. However, it's possible Craig is searching for a new franchise.
According to Metro, Craig recently gave an interview with Saga Magazine where he talked about his childhood dream of playing a variety of superheroes, including Superman and Spider-Man. After being asked about whether he thought of playing Bond when he was a child, Craig responded "The answer is no. I never did. I dreamed of being all sorts of other things – Superman, Spider-Man, the Invisible Man, even a good old-fashioned cowboy. But Bond [not] so much, which seems ironic now." Surprisingly, Craig had the opportunity to play a cowboy in the 2011 film Cowboys & Aliens. Not mentioned was any desire to be in the Star Wars franchise, although he had that opportunity in 2015 with an uncredited cameo in Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
Branching out from the Bond movies has been a challenge for Craig, as they pay a lot of money and typically involve restrictive clauses; he didn't appear in a single film in 2013 or 2014, for instance. But last year's breakout hit Knives Out gave Craig a chance to flex a different acting muscle than the one used to play the world's foremost fictional spy. With new opportunities on the horizon, playing a superhero could give him a chance to flex yet another muscle while achieving a childhood dream.
The odds of him playing Spider-Man are slim, since he's usually played by a young actor, and Tom Holland is entrenched in the role. Henry Cavill's time playing Superman is almost up, although it's hard to imagine Craig taking over a character that will probably involve roles for the long haul. Still, with a never ending stream of superhero movies being created, there's almost certainly an opportunity for Daniel Craig to play a superhero (or villain) in a Marvel or DC film, should he want to do it.
Source: Metro
