No Time To Die - What We Know So Far

The James Bond franchise continues to chug along, and "No Time to Die" will mark the 25th official film in a movie franchise that began in 1962 with "Dr. No." However, "No Time to Die" is already a much different film than the typical Bond fare, in many different ways.

For one, it will have completely different distributors than the last Bond film, "Spectre," in 2015. Instead of Sony, this MGM subsidiary United Artists will be handling domestic distribution, while Universal is distributing internationally (via Deadline). It's also just the second film in the series written by a woman, as "Fleabag" creator Phoebe Waller-Bridge shares a writing credit for the screenplay (via The Guardian). Finally, "No Time to Die" will mark the end of an era, as it will be the final Bond film for star Daniel Craig.

Here's everything we know about the latest entry in the James Bond franchise.

As reported by Deadline, "No Time to Die" will premiere in theaters on Oct. 8, 2021. That's welcome news for fans, who have already put up with multiple delays to the release schedule.

"No Time to Die" was originally scheduled for release in November 2019, but when original director Danny Boyle dropped out due to creative differences, it was pushed to Feb. 2020 and then April 2020 (via Deadline). Then, COVID-19 arrived, and "No Time to Die" was again delayed, this time to April 2021 — becoming the first tentpole movie from a major franchise to be delayed due to COVID-19. Finally, Universal pushed "No Time to Die" back once again to the Oct. 8 date. According to Variety, Universal made the final delay because it hopes to capitalize on more movie theaters (hopefully) being open in the fall.

For what it's worth, sources who saw the movie told Deadline that it's worth the wait. 

"No Time to Die" has a big cast with many returning characters and new faces. In addition to Daniel Craig, many 007 franchise mainstays will be back, including: Ralph Fiennes as M; Ben Whishaw as Q; Naomie Harris as Moneypenny; Rory Kinnear as Tanner; Jeffrey Wright as CIA Agent Felix Leiter; and Léa Seydoux as MI6 psychiatrist Madeleine Swann. Christoph Waltz will also be reprising his role as villain Ernst Stavro Blofeld, who was captured at the end of "Spectre" and is now in MI6 custody.

Newcomers include "Bohemian Rhapsody" star Rami Malek, who will be playing the villain of "No Time to Die," the aptly named Lyutsifer Safin. Lashana Lynch will play Nomi, a new 00 agent who joined MI6 after Bond's retirement, and Ana de Armas will play Paloma, a CIA agent who teams up with Bond to battle Safin.

Those in front of the camera are just as important as those behind it when it comes to film and television projects. Cary Joji Fukunaga — the genius behind "True Detective" Season 1 — directed "No Time to Die." This marks the first Bond film for the director, for which he also co-wrote the screenplay alongside Neal Purvis, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, and Robert Wade.

Fans of the more recent Bond films should be happy to see those names — although they might not be familiar with them. Purvis and Wade have worked together for quite some time, penning the screenplays for "The World is Not Enough," "Die Another Day," "Casino Royale," "Quantum of Solace," "Skyfall," and "Spectre." It would have been shocking not to see their names on the credits, and thankfully they were fully on board to write Daniel Craig's last film as 007.

The film is also executive produced by Chris Brigham, who boasts works like "Inception" and "Argo." You also can't have Bond without broccoli — Barbara Broccoli, who also serves as a producer. The legendary producer's second credit ever was "License to Kill," and she has worked on every Bond production since.

A trailer for "No Time to Die" arrived on Sept. 3, 2020, and it gives a good idea of what to expect from the movie. Five years after the events of "Spectre," 007 has retired from MI6. Sure enough, his old ally Felix Leiter drags him back into the spy lifestyle with a mission to locate a missing scientist. Soon, Bond discovers that the terrorist leader Lyutsifer Safin is behind the kidnapping, which is part of a plot that could kill millions of people. As for what Safin's supervillain scheme actually is, we'll have to wait until October to find out. Cary Joji Fukunaga called Safin a "hyper intelligent" and "worthy adversary," part of a new generation of villains Bond will contend with (via Empire Online).

In terms of themes, Fukunaga believes that "No Time to Die" is "the culmination of all Bond has become." As fans of the Daniel Craig-era Bond remember, James Bond has been through a lot, from the death of his lover Vesper in "Casino Royale" to the destruction of his childhood home in "Skyfall." It appears that Craig's final chapter as Bond will see the character confronting his many, many demons and possibly getting something like closure — until the next Bond comes along, anyway. 

The Daniel Craig-led 007 films are known for their tremendous action sequences, intricate plots, and devilish villains. They are also widely popular for their theme songs, which always manage to capture the movie's overall tone. For "Casino Royale," it was Chris Cornell's "You Know My Name." "Quantum of Solace's" theme song, "Another Way to Die," by Alicia Keys and Jack White, was a big success, while Adele's "Skyfall" for the film of the same name was an Academy Award winner. Sam Smith also nabbed an Oscar for his "Spectre" theme song, "Writing's On the Wall."

It's no surprise that "No Time to Die" will feature a theme song by one of the decade's most prominent artists — Billie Eilish. The young singer provides the vocals for the movie's theme song, also titled "No Time to Die." The song was released in October 2020, putting its debut and the film's almost one year apart.

Additionally, the great Hans Zimmer serves as the composer of "No Time to Die," marking the legendary musician's first work on a Bond film.