Daniel Craig to be a presenter at 2019 Oscars

Oscars logo

Daniel Craig will be a presenter at this year’s Oscars show, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said in a statement on its website.

The academy also released the names of presenters in a series of tweets this morning. Besides the James Bond star, other presenters include Chris Evans, Jennifer Lopez and Charlize Theron. The academy said it will be making additional announcements of talent that will participate in the Oscars show.

Craig’s wife, Rachel Weisz, is a nominee for Best Supporting Actress. The Oscars ceremony is Feb. 24, shortly before Bond 25 is scheduled to begin principal photography on March 4.

Black Panther receives Oscar Best Picture Nomination

Black Panther poster

Black Panther was one of eight films to receive an Oscar nomination for Best Picture, the Academy for Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced today.

Marvel Studios and its parent company, Walt Disney Co., had promoted the 2018 film heavily during the nomination process. Black Panther also received other nominations, including best score, costume design, song and production design. It received no acting, writing or directing nominations.

Still, it was a big moment for Marvel, whose films have had a huge impact on the box office. Black Panther was No. 1 grossing U.S. film last year at $700 million, according to Box Office Mojo.  Worldwide, it was No. 2 at $1.35 billion, behind Marvel’s Avengers: Infinity War at $2.05 billion.

The Black Panther character made his debut in 1966 as part of a Fantastic Four comic book by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. The story introduced Wakanda, a technologically advanced African nation. The film drew also drew upon later stories by various writers and artists that expanded the Panther mythos. Director Ryan Coogler also said last year that the movie drew inspirations from James Bond films.

The other films nominated for Best Picture were BlacKkKlansman, Bohemian Rhapsody, The Favourite, Green Book, Roma, A Star Is Born and Vice.

Also, Rachel Weisz, wife of 007 actor Daniel Craig, was nominated for Best Supporting Actress for The Favourite.

About that Bond 25 release date

“This is an old friend of mine. And it tells me…something smells!”

During the past week, there’s been a buzz that the pregnancy of Rachel Weisz, the wife of Daniel Craig, may push back the November 2019 release date of Bond 25.

As Keim Bey would say: “This is an old friend of mine. And he tells me something smells!”

This latest notion began when Weisz, 48, gave an interview to Marueen Dowd of The New York Times that went online April 20.  The actress revealed she was pregnant. From the Times story;

“I’ll be showing soon,” she says, with a radiant smile.

On April 26, The Sun weighed in with a story that Bond 25’s U.S. release date of November 2019 might be pushed back because of the pregnancy.

A film source said: “Pushing back the schedules suits all parties.

“Daniel (Craig) can concentrate on matters at home with Rachel, which are pretty life-changing, to say the least.”

Let us count the ways this smells:

–The Bond 25 release date was announced in July 2017 before a distributor was in place.

–It’s not unheard for women in their late 40s to utilize the services of fertility specialists to become pregnant. We don’t know that happened in this case. But it’s rare for women in their late 40s to suddenly become pregnant.

–Daniel Craig announced in August 2017 he would return for another James Bond film. At the very least, he and Weisz may have already been trying to have a child.

That said, there are other reasons why Bond 25’s release date could be pushed back.

–Danny Boyle became a late contender to direct Bond 25. Whether that happens depends on whether a story idea Boyle and writer John Hodge gets approved for the film.

–A non-007 spy project being made by Eon Productions, The Rhythm Section, has been delayed because of an injury to star Blake Lively.

–Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 007’s home studio, reportedly is trying to sell itself, according to an April 4 story by The Hollywood Reporter. One of MGM’s selling points, according to the report, is the studio’s film rights to 007.

Put another way, there are multiple reasons to suspect Bond 25’s release date could be pushed back.

The pregnancy angle is not the most convincing. Weisz’s due date would be before Bond 25 begins filming (end of the year is the earliest estimate).  Meanwhile, MGM hasn’t been a stable studio for decades.

It’s more likely that a Bond 25 delay would be related to MGM than Daniel Craig and Rachel Weisz welcoming an addition to the family.

Daniel Craig (briefly) discusses Bond 25

Daniel Craig and Rachel Weisz made an appearance Monday night at a charity event. Craig didn’t say much about Bond 25, except to confirm yet again he’ll be in it. Craig first said in August 2017 he’d be back for a fifth turn as 007.

The actor ducked a question whether Danny Boyle will direct. Boyle has said he will if a script by John Hodge is accepted.

The Associated Press posted a short video. You can view it below.

NYT’s Maureen Dowd talks to Daniel Craig

Daniel Craig in Skyfall

Maureen Dowd, one of the star columnists of The New York Times, has AN ARTICLE in the newspaper where she talks to 007 star Daniel Craig.

Dowd’s piece covers a lot more than just Bond, including the play Betrayal, where he’ll appear with his wife Rachel Weisz. But Dowd’s piece does contain what’s emerging as one of the main talking points of Bond 24, due out in the fall of 2015. Mainly, that Bond 24 should lighten up compared with the actor’s first three 007 films. Here’s an excerpt:

Since the dazzling “Skyfall” — which earned $1.1 billion worldwide, making it the highest-grossing Bond film ever and the most profitable movie in British history — Mr. Craig is enjoying the role more. He, the director Sam Mendes (an ex-boyfriend of Ms. Weisz’s) and one of the “Skyfall” screenwriters, John Logan, are all on board for the 24th Bond film, due out in the fall of 2015.

Mr. Craig hopes that, without returning to Pink Pantherville, they can start to instill a bit of the arch humor of Roger Moore, the first Bond he saw at the age of 7.

“We’ve got it all to play with, and we should play with it, and we should have some fun with it,” he said.

He draws a distinction between acting and modeling (though he concedes that he does both as Bond). “There’s a lot of modeling in films now,’ ” he said, adding wryly: “I do a movie where I have to turn around a lot. I want to kill myself sometimes, but sometimes you have to go, O.K., right, this is the moment when I have to turn around.”

Dowd primarily writes about politics, but often segues into entertainment. Her ENTRY IN WIKIPEDIA says, “Dowd, who perceives her columns to be an exploration of politics, Hollywood, and gender related topics, often uses popular culture to support and metaphorically enhance her political commentary.”

To read the entire story, titled, “The Vulnerable Mr. Bond,” CLICK HERE.

To read more about Maureen Dowd, check out, THE REDHEAD AND THE GRAY LADY, a profile in New York magazine published several years ago.

UPDATE: The New York Times Magazine’s Web site has a slide show called “The Bond Market.” You can view it by CLICKING HERE.

UPDATE II (Sept. 8): Maureen Dowd has a longer article about the stage production of Betryal titled TWO’S COMPANY, THREE’S A SHOW. Here’s an excerpt:

Will audiences be able to wrap their heads around James Bond as a cuckold?

“I hope they won’t be able to,” Mr. Craig says, appearing delighted at the thought. “I hope they’ll get unnerved by it.”

The 45-year-old Mr. Craig is notoriously private about his romance with the 43-year-old Ms. Weisz: They wouldn’t be interviewed as a pair; when I talk to them and their fellow Briton and co-star, Rafe Spall, they avoid sitting next to each other; when the photos are taken, Mr. Craig chafes at looking too lovey-dovey.

“Someone called us a power couple the other day,” he marvels. “I was like, what the” — he drops in an expletive — “does that mean? We just keep ourselves to ourselves.”

Daniel Craig and Rachel Weisz are married in New York

The new Mrs. Craig

Not that it’s any of our business, but we are otherwise pleased to report that Daniel Craig ( Tomb Raider II) was married to actress Rachel Weisz ( The Mummy) this past Wednesday in a private ceremony in New York.

You can read the full story at The Guardian UK or, by this point, a bazillion other entertainment news outlets.

HMSS wishes the fantastically wealthy and improbably good-looking newly-minted couple much happiness in their future together.