Fans are excited to see Benoit Blanc return for a new case in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery. As the sequel to 2019’s Knives Out continues to build steam, the anticipation is nothing new for leading man Daniel Craig after spending almost two decades as James Bond. Starring in the beloved franchise did shape Craig’s approach to doing the Knives Out movies. With Glass Onion arriving later this year, the No Time to Die star revealed how the international spy influenced his work in the murder mystery franchise.
The former James Bond star lived and breathed the international spy for years, so forming a film series around Benoit Blanc was nothing new to him. Much like the Bond franchise, coming back to the Southern detective was about keeping things fresh for Daniel Craig. The 54-year-old actor admitted there is some pressure to match the first Knives Out film without turning the murder mystery into a satire. Craig opened up to Empire about how playing 007 for 15 years prepared him to retool Blanc for his second outing. In his words:
I’ve spent the past 15 years of my life trying to do that in a franchise, so I’m not afraid of it. If you’ve got the right people in the room and the right talent, then you can do it. Rian’s a genius writer and doesn’t want to repeat [himself]. Neither do we want to let people down; we want audiences to enjoy the world that we created in the first one and believe in this one.
Reinvigorating a character for a new story and setting is an old hat for Craig at this point. As the former James Bond actor pointed out, keeping a franchise going is all about the right people coming together at the right time. Not wanting to mess up what made viewers love the first time is commendable, Daniel Craig already spilled that channeling Blanc’s signature Southern drawl again was a challenge that came up in return for the second round. The Knives Out star and Rian Johnson wanted to keep Detective Blanc’s adventures fresh without sacrificing the charm of the original film.
Glass Onion will see Detective Benoit Blanc have to solve another murder case after being invited to a Greek island getaway by tech billionaire Miles Bron, played by Edward Norton. Norton isn’t the only new castmate starring in as Kate Hudson, Dave Bautista, and Kathryn Hahn are part of the Knives Out 2 cast. Much like the original film, Knives Out 2’s plot is still unknown as fans prepare for every twist and turn.
Moviegoers will get the chance to see Benoit Blanc once more when Glass Onion: A Knives Out Story arrives on Netflix on December 23. Before premiering on Netflix, the sequel will make its world premiere at Toronto International Film Festival. While Glass Onion is Daniel Craig’s only 2022 project, there are multiple upcoming movies still to come. If you want to see Craig as James Bond once again, you stream watch all his 007 outings, including No Time to Die, by getting an Amazon Prime subscription.