Portrait · Zach Catanzareti Photo; existing crop by TaurusEmerald / CC BY 2.0

Daniel Craig

Actor and producer

Born 1968

Daniel Craig is an English actor whose career spans British television, independent film, international franchises and the stage. Born in Chester, Cheshire, on March 2, 1968, he became widely known as James Bond while continuing to build a varied record beyond that character. His five Bond films began with Casino Royale and ended with No Time to Die. His interest in performing grew before professional training. Childhood school productions, including Oliver!, helped provide an early setting for acting, and cinema became another source of fascination. At sixteen he moved to London and joined the National Youth Theatre. Those beginnings connect a north-west England upbringing with the institutions and working habits that shaped his adult career. His mother, Olivia, an art teacher, took him to Liverpool’s Everyman, where he spent time backstage. In 1984 he joined the National Youth Theatre in London, later working there as a handyman. Craig graduated from Guildhall’s acting programme in 1991. The school later recognised his inclusion in the New Year Honours, where he became a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George for services to film and theatre. In BAFTA’s career conversation he described the importance of teachers, casting and learning how to work. His account gives particular weight to National Youth Theatre mentors and to the confidence that came with demanding roles. Love Is the Devil was one of the experiences through which he developed a clearer sense of what he could contribute. The television work, theatre training and early independent films belong to the same gradual development, rather than a sudden beginning with Bond. His agency’s career record shows that range across film, television and theatre. Some Voices brought a British Independent Film Award, while Love Is the Devil had brought recognition at Edinburgh. These smaller-scale projects remain part of the record alongside the later franchise films. Looking back while discussing Queer, he recalled The Power of One as his first film and the experience of filming in Zimbabwe. His recollections also include a difficult Road to Perdition audition and the impact of working with Steven Spielberg on Munich. They show a career assembled through individual encounters and opportunities. His collaboration with Luca Guadagnino on Queer gave that career another direction after the Bond years. In their joint conversation the actor and director discussed the trust and creative risk involved in the project. Craig’s work as William Lee sits alongside the contrasting figure of detective Benoit Blanc, rather than extending the same screen persona. Wake Up Dead Man returned him to Blanc in 2025. Rian Johnson’s third mystery continued the character introduced in Knives Out and revisited in Glass Onion. Work outside acting includes a completed UNMAS appointment advocating the elimination of mines and explosive hazards. That role began in April 2015 and concluded in April 2023. His announced future work includes Uncle Andrew in Greta Gerwig’s Narnia adaptation. Netflix’s September 2026 update places its theatrical and streaming releases in 2027; the film remains forthcoming in this checked record.

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Connected people

ConnectionRachel WeiszSpouse; marriage publicly recorded since 2011.

ConnectionLuca GuadagninoQueer director and interview collaborator.

ConnectionRian JohnsonDirector of the Benoit Blanc mysteries.

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Current work, broadcasts and public milestones, each linked to the primary record used for publication.

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2026

NewsChecked against a primary source or trusted newsroom.

ScopeOnly attributable updates about Daniel Craig's work and public record.

Project
Narnia’s 2027 release schedule
Netflix announces a theatrical and streaming rollout for Greta Gerwig’s adaptation, with Craig as Uncle Andrew.
22 Sept 2026Official source
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News
The official record of a completed UN role
UNMAS’s updated record identifies Craig as a former advocate, whose appointment concluded in April 2023.
7 Jan 2026Official source
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Project
Benoit Blanc’s third mystery
Wake Up Dead Man brings Craig back as Blanc in the released 2025 film.
12 Dec 2025Official source
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Award
A career honour from London critics
Craig receives the Dilys Powell Award at the 2025 ceremony.
2 Feb 2025Official source
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News
Looking back at the route to Queer
Craig discusses reading Burroughs and working with Luca Guadagnino.
3 Jan 2025Source checked
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News
A new collaboration after Bond
Craig and Guadagnino discuss their work together on Queer.
16 Dec 2024Source checked
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News
Preparing William Lee through reading
Craig describes reading Queer and returning to Junky for the role.
24 Nov 2024Source checked
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News
A career in his own words
BAFTA’s conversation traces training, mentors and formative roles.
25 Sept 2021Source checked
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Latest Index

Narnia’s 2027 release schedule

The official record of a completed UN role

Benoit Blanc’s third mystery

A career honour from London critics

Looking back at the route to Queer

A new collaboration after Bond

Preparing William Lee through reading

A career in his own words