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The future of the James Bond series remains uncertain, with actors ranging from Idris Elba to Gugu Mbatha-Raw rumored to take over the role. (We’ve suggested a couple possibilities already ourselves. Steve Buscemi can do anything, right?) It’s certainly time for a left turn, or at least a move away from “traditionally handsome white dude.” But as of today, Daniel Craig is still the traditionally handsome white dude we officially associate with Ian Fleming’s classic character, which puts him at 4,147 consecutive days in the role—exactly one more than Pierce Brosnan’s run, moving Craig into second place overall.


Craig’s first of four Bond films was 2006’s Casino Royale, kickstarting a run of prestige-picture action flicks that revitalized the franchise after Brosnan’s increasingly campy four-film run sputtered out in Die Another Day. Roger Moore and Sean Connery both portrayed the spy in eight films apiece, although Moore’s greater time span makes him the leader. (They really cranked those first eight out with Connery.) If Craig can stick around for one more movie, or roughly two and a half years, he could overtake the top spot, at which point one-Bond wonder George Lazenby would be legally forced to move out of Roger Moore’s garage and into Daniel Craig’s basement as a result of the James Bond Fraternity Rules established in the early ’90s. If you’re looking for a place to start in the half-century espionage institution, check out our primer here.