Who is Daniel Craig? Everything You Need to Know (2025)

Daniel Wroughton Craig was born on 2 March 1968, in Chester, Cheshire, England, to Carol Olivia and Timothy John Wroughton Craig. While his mother was an art teacher, his father owned the pubs, ‘Ring o’ Bells’ and ‘Boot Inn.’ Initially, he was employed as a midshipman with the ‘Merchant Navy.’

Academically mediocre, Craig received his formal education from various schools, including ‘Holy Trinity Primary School,’ ‘Hilbre High School,’ and later ‘Calday Grange Grammar School’ where he studied briefly as a sixth-form student.

Alongside completing his formal education, he trained himself in acting, attending classes at the ‘Everyman Theatre.’ At the age of 16, he moved to London to train at the ‘National Youth Theatre.’

Later on, in 1991, he graduated from the ‘Guildhall School of Music and Drama’ at Barbican. For three years, he received his training at the ‘Royal Shakespeare Company.’

He started his career on a promising note, making his debut with the coming-of-age drama ‘The Power of One’ in 1992. The film had him playing the role of an Afrikaner soldier.

Subsequently, he starred in a number of films, including ‘Sharpe’s Eagle,’ ‘A Kid in King Arthur’s Court,’ ‘Kiss and Tell,’ and so on. He made his television debut in 1993 with the series ‘Zorro,’ in which he starred in two episodes.

Following this, he played guest roles in a number of television series, including ‘Drop the Dead Donkey,’ ‘The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles,’ ‘Between the Lines,’ ‘Heartbeat,’ and ‘Screen Two.’

His biggest breakthrough came in 1996 with the television series ‘Our Friends in the North.’ The hugely successful television series helped him gain a favorable image amongst the critics, who lauded his acting abilities.

Eventually, he became known as a sex symbol. People largely admired him for his looks and hot body rather than his acting skills. With a keenness to turn the tables, he ventured into films and television series of different genres.

The year 1998 became his most successful year career-wise as almost all of his films did well critically. The year began with the release of the biopic ‘Love is the Devil.’ Though the film opened to mixed reviews, it earned him much critical acclaim for his artistic skills.

After a successful outing in ‘Love is the Devil,’ he starred in a historical biopic titled ‘Elizabeth,’ which was released in 1998. The movie was widely acclaimed for its excellent narration and perfect portrayal of the character of a Jesuit priest.

He continued appearing in successful films and went on to act in the World War I saga, ‘The Trench.’ The movie, which became a blockbuster hit, allowed him to showcase his skill as an actor. After his successful outing in ‘The Trench,’ he went on to appear in films like ‘Some Voices,’ ‘Hotel Splendide,’ and ‘I Dreamed of Africa.’

His ascending career graph met with a jolting blow when his next film, ‘Lara Croft: Tomb Raider,’ where he was paired opposite Angelina Jolie, received negative reviews from critics. However, the blow did not last long as he bounced back by playing an important role in the super hit film ‘Road to Perdition.’ The film was responsible for renewing his stardom.

Riding on his renewed success, he came up with a powerful performance in ‘The Mother’ which was followed by another power-packed performance in the violent crime thriller, ‘Layer Cake.’ He then played the character of ‘Joe’ in the film ‘Enduring Love.’

His successful stint in films continued throughout 2005 as he starred in the blockbuster movie ‘The Jacket.’ He then appeared in Steven Spielberg’s ‘Munich.’ While his movies made him a regular news feature, it was the official announcement of his role as the next ‘007’ that created a stir.

His appointment as the next ‘James Bond’ created a controversy amongst people in the film fraternity and the audience who criticized the choice. Despite the criticism, he accepted the responsibilities and chose to star as the next ‘James Bond,’ succeeding Pierce Brosnan.

On November 14, 2006, he proved his critics wrong by delivering a powerful performance in his first ‘Bond’ film. The movie ‘Casino Royale’ became a blockbuster hit, garnering $594 million at the box office, the highest ever by a ‘Bond’ film at the time. His performance was highly acclaimed and even earned him a couple of nominations in the ‘Best Actor’ category.

Following the ‘Bond’ film, he starred in a couple of other films, including ‘Infamous,’ ‘The Invasion,’ ‘The Golden Compass,’6 and ‘Flashbacks of a Fool.’ In ‘Renaissance,’ he voiced a character named Barthélémy Karas. However, none of these films worked in his favor.

His tough luck ended with the release of his second ‘Bond’ film, ‘Quantum of Solace.’ The movie was appreciated, but it could not replicate the success of ‘Casino Royale.’ However, it did earn him a couple of nominations.

Not letting the ‘Bond’ image dominate his acting career, he starred in other films, such as ‘Defiance,’ ‘Cowboys & Aliens,’ ‘Dream House,’ ‘The Adventures of Tintin,’ and ‘The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.’

In 2012, he was seen reprising his role as ‘James Bond’ in his next outing titled ‘Skyfall.’ The movie surpassed all the 22 ‘Bond’ films released earlier in terms of positive reception and box office collection. The film crossed the $1 billion mark at the box office, eventually becoming the seventh-highest-grossing film of all time and the highest-grossing film in the ‘Bond’ series.

Soon after, he appeared in his fourth ‘Bond’ film ‘Spectre’ which was directed by Sam Mendes, who was the director of the previous ‘Bond’ movie ‘Skyfall.’ The director-actor duo tried to recreate the magic and was moderately successful. The movie opened to mixed reviews and was a commercial success.

He then appeared in an uncredited cameo as ‘Stormtrooper’ in the movie ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ (2015). In 2017, he appeared in the critically acclaimed heist comedy ‘Logan Lucky.’ He also appeared in ‘Kings,’ which failed at the box office and garnered poor reviews from critics.

He was signed to reprise his role as ‘James Bond’ in the 25th installment of the ‘Bond’ series ‘No Time to Die.’ By signing the movie, he became the third-longest serving ‘Bond’ after Roger Moore (seven movies) and Sean Connery (six movies).

In 2022, he played the role of ‘Detective Benoit Blanc’ in the American mystery film ‘Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery’ which was written, directed, and co-produced by Rian Johnson. The film saw universal acclaim upon release and received a 92% approval score on Rotten Tomatoes.

He has also voiced the character of ‘James Bond’ in several video games, such as ‘GoldenEye 007’ and ‘James Bond 007: Blood Stone,’ played on platforms, such as ‘Nintendo 64,’ ‘Xbox 360,’ ‘PlayStation 3,’ ‘Nintendo DS,’ and ‘Microsoft Windows.’

He made his Broadway debut alongside Hugh Jackman in the drama ‘A Steady Rain’ at the ‘Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre.’ He again appeared in a Broadway play alongside his wife Rachel Weisz in ‘Betrayal’ at the ‘Ethel Barrymore Theatre.’

He will be next seen in the upcoming romantic period drama film ‘Queer’ where he will play the role of ‘Lee.’