James Bond: Daniel Craig and Javier Bardem

Written by Kelli Gillespie

It’s been 50 years since James Bond’s big screen debut in Dr. No, and for the golden anniversary, the MI6 secret agent is still the gold standard. Daniel Craig reprises the role for the third time opposite the ultimate bad guy embodied brilliantly by Javier Bardem. Risen talked with these foes about Skyfall, sacrifice, and sins.

Interviewed at the Crosby Hotel in Soho, New York

Risen Magazine: What do you feel like you’ve had to sacrifice, if anything, to be where you’re at today in your career?
Daniel Craig: The only thing you sacrifice is being away from your family for so long. That’s the toughest part of it, but I get home as often as I can and I make sure that I see my family as much as I can. You have to, otherwise you go a bit insane.

Risen Magazine: A theme in Skyfall is Think on Your Sins… What do you think James Bond puts his faith in?
Daniel Craig: In himself, his loyalty, and his own ability. He gets tested and what makes him interesting is that he is fallible and brittle at times.

Risen Magazine: If you could disappear for a bit and people didn’t know you were Daniel Craig the actor, what would you find yourself doing?
Daniel Craig: I would get on a plane and fly places and not worry… go to a museum in the mid of day because it gets a bit too difficult if there is a crowd around. There is not much I don’t do. I try to live my life as well as I can.

Risen Magazine: There’s a lot of reflection in this film on where these guys are at and how they got there, and whether it was by instinct or discipline. How do you make decisions?
Javier Bardem: For me it’s always about the impact. Something has to create an impact on you. Whether it’s intellectual or emotional, something that tells you there is something of worth to do… and then seeing yourself being capable of doing something. Because sometimes we have so much ambition and we don’t really connect with our own limits and it’s not meant for us.
Risen Magazine: Looking back at being a part of this Bond film, what will stand out most to you?
Javier Bardem: There is this one scene where James Bond and M were looking at me and I forgot my lines. I realized they were looking at me and I thought, “Why are they looking at me? I may be the villain in the movie?” I forgot my lines it’s true, then Sam [Mendes, Director] came to me laughing because he knew and said, “What’s going on?” And I said, “I just realized I’m in a James Bond movie.” They were all laughing at me, which is the best way to approach insecurity.

Interview originally published in Risen Magazine, Winter 2012