Daniel Craig in 'Girl With the Dragon Tattoo': Just a normal guy?

Daniel Craig has it nailed: As anyone who's stepped into a roomful of journalists can confirm, we're not a profession full of James Bond types. So in "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo," Craig wanted his journalist character to look like a "normal guy."

A guy who, if he found himself in danger, might actually appear to be, you know, in danger.

"I wanted to look as much like a normal guy as possible," Craig told Matt Lauer on the "Today" show Friday. "This guy is a journalist and he works very hard and maybe drinks a little too much, but when the thriller aspect of this movie kicks in, I wanted him to be in danger." Problem was, he'd just come off playing Bond. Good news is, it's easier to look like a journalist than to look like an international super-spy.

PHOTOS: 'The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo' premieres in New York

But wait: normal guy, journalist. Normal guy ... journalist? Mmm kay. If you say so. Craig is a pretty good actor, and one who notes that his costar, Rooney Mara, ain't so bad herself.

"All of the sort of, the hoo-hah that was going on" about then-unknown Mara's casting in Stieg Larsson's story, "it didn't make any sense when we started filming, because once I saw what she was doing, how she was doing it, how good an actress she is, and what kind of great person she is, I just had every confidence in her."

And in case he didn't make his point: "She hits it out of the park," the actor said.

Craig and the "Tattoo" crew were back East for the New York City premiere of the film, which opens Wednesday in theaters. But audiences should know, it's definitely a movie for adults.

"I'm hoping babysitters are going to make a lot of money out of this movie," he told Lauer.

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-- Christie D'Zurilla
Twitter.com/dzurillaville

Photo: Daniel Craig gets all journalisty with Robin Wright in "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo," which opens Wednesday. Credit: Merrick Morton / Columbia Pictures

 

'Girl With the Dragon Tattoo' in London: Rooney Mara cleans up

Rooney Mara looked totally transformed at the London premiere of David Fincher's "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo." The fact that an actor doesn't look like her or his character isn't new, of course. But compared with her co-star Daniel Craig -- who looks like Daniel Craig off-screen and on -- Mara's premiere appearance was quite a shock for some.

In the film, which is an adaptation of Stieg Larssen's bestselling novel, Mara plays the much-coveted role of Lisbeth Salander, a bisexual computer hacker with Asperger syndrome who can perform amazing feats with her laptop alone. In the film, Mara plays Salander in lots of black leather, facial piercings and shaved eyebrows. At the premiere, she played up her femininity in a backless white gown and no piercings -- not even in her ears.

Speaking of her character, Mara told Reuters on the red carpet that "I think everyone can relate to that feeling of being misunderstood or outcast. Everyone at some point in their life can relate to people in a position of power using that power over them. I think people really want to see her succeed."

Director David Fincher and screenwriter Steven Zaillian also attended the premiere, held Monday night in London's Leicester Square. Other members of the cast there included Stellan Skarsgard, Joely Richardson, Geraldine James and Yorick Van Wageninge.

With the much-ballyhooed embargo date on reviews having passed, notices are starting to appear online and the consensus (so far) seems to be very positive for the "Feel Bad Movie of Christmas."

 

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--Patrick Kevin Day

Photo: Rooney Mara. Joel Ryan / Associated Press

Celebrity weddings 2011: Couples, controversy and wedded bliss

Boy meets girl. Another boy meets another girl. They eventually switch partners. And that was just one of the topsy-turvy stories from the year in celebrity weddings, which kicked off with Shania Twain and Frederic Thiebaud's New Year's Day celebration of love.

It was, of course, a love that blossomed after their spouses cheated on them with each other.

But the happiness didn't stop there.

Kelsey Grammer found love again, and he only had to be single for two weeks. That was the amount of time between the finalization of his divorce from Camille Grammer and his walk down the aisle with young bride Kayte Walsh.

PHOTOS: Celebrity weddings 2011

Other lovestruck celebrity couples were married in a castle (Kate Moss and Jamie Hince) and in secret (Daniel Craig and Rachel Weisz), on a ranch (Reese Witherspoon and Jim Toth), on a private island (Vanessa Manillo and Nick Lachey) and on a yacht (Brooke Burke and David Charvet). 

Controversy may have danced around the edges here and there, but faces were wreathed in smiles, even if those smiles were short-lived (Kim Kardashian and Kris Humphries).

But let's toast the celebrity weddings of 2011. Our wish for happy couples: That we don't see your faces next year in the celebrity breakups of 2012.

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-- Amy Hubbard+

Photo: Shania Twain and husband Fredreic Thiebaud. Credit: PR Newswire

Daniel Craig is a fan of privacy, but Kardashians, not so much

Daniel Craig has revealed he's not a big Kardashian fan.

The man who is James Bond and stars in David Fincher's upcoming "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" told British GQ that it's very important to keep your private life private. (Craig and Rachel Weisz had a secret wedding in New York in June.)

"I think there's a lot to be said for keeping your own counsel," he told the mag. "You can't buy your privacy back. 'Ooh, I want to be alone... We've been in your living room. We were at your birth. You filmed it for us and showed us the placenta, and now you want some privacy?"

Craig's saltier language below has been edited out for sensitive readers, because he didn't stop there.

"It is a career; I'm not being cynical. And why wouldn't you? Look at the Kardashians, they're worth millions. Millions! I don't think they were that badly off to begin with, but now look at them. You see that and you think, 'What, you mean all I have to do is behave like a ... idiot on television and then you'll pay me millions?'"

Once again, Craig's saltier language has been edited out. Trust us, he's not a Kardashian fan.

So Kourtney Kardashian, who just announced she's pregnant with baby No. 2, can probably stop holding her breath for a shower gift from Craig.

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-- Patrick Kevin Day

Photo: Daniel Craig. Credit: Anacleto Rapping / Los Angeles Times

Javier Bardem inked as new villain to Daniel Craig's James Bond

Now that Javier Bardem has had time off to be a new dad, he's headed back to work being bad: The actor has been cast as Daniel Craig's nemesis in the new James Bond film.

Bardem, last seen in "Eat Pray Love" with Julia Roberts, will join Craig and director Sam Mendes for the next flick in the spy franchise. With the working title "Bond 23," the movie is set for a November 2012 release. Judi Dench will be back as M, with Naomie Harris on board as Moneypenny.

"I am very excited. My parents took me to watch the movies and I saw all of them," Bardem said recently on "Nightline" (see the interview, below). "So to play that is going to be fun."

Sadly, the fact that he's been cast was about all he could reveal, despite having had his eye on the role since earlier this year. "They chose me to play this man, but I cannot give you many details," he said.

But never fear -- the Internet is forever! "They're changing the whole thing, the whole dynamic," Bardem told Awards Tracker in February. "I'd be playing Bond's nemesis, yes, but it's not that obvious. Everything is more nuanced. It's very intriguing."

Bardem is of course pretty good at playing the bad guy -- so much so that his turn as Anton Chigurh in 2007's "No Country for Old Men" scored him a supporting actor Oscar. He and Penélope Cruz -- who got married in July 2010, with her rep denying at the time that the actress was pregnant -- welcomed a baby boy in January.

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-- Matt Donnelly
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Photo: Javier Bardem in "Eat Pray Love." Credit: Columbia Pictures

'Cowboys & Aliens' brings its premiere to the fans at Comic-Con

Last year, Jon Favreau had to pull out the shackles to drag newbie Harrison Ford to Comic-Con International to present a sneak peek at "Cowboys & Aliens," a little movie they were doing with Daniel Craig.

This summer, no hardware was apparent (Ford even dragged along a date, wife Calista Flockhart) as  "Cowboys & Aliens" saw its world premiere Saturday in conjunction with the 2011 incarnation of the fan fest.

It was the first world premiere to be held in the event's 42 years — and there was a reason for that.

"That's where it all started, and I want to give back," Favreau told Hero Complex in June, referring to Comic-Con and the fans there. "They should have the opportunity to see it first."

Craig, Ford and Favreau were joined at the San Diego Civic Theatre by costars including Olivia Wilde, Ana de la Reguera, Sam Rockwell, Walton Goggins, Paul Dano, Abigail Spencer, Buck Taylor, Clancy Brown, Adam Beach and Noah Ringer, plus Ron Howard, Steven Spielberg and Brian Grazer, to name a few producer types.

Also spotted: Andy Serkis of "The Lord of the Rings" movies and Gillian Jacobs of "Community."

"These are the people we make movies for," Ford told Access Hollywood, "and coming here, to them, acknowledges their importance to us."

"Cowboys & Aliens" opens Friday. Click the pics for more photos from the premiere.

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— Christie D'Zurilla
twitter.com/dzurillaville

Photos: Daniel Craig, top, and Harrison Ford and Calista Flockhart, left, at the "Cowboys & Aliens" premiere at the San Diego Civic Theatre during Comic-Con 2011 on July 23. Credits: Frazer Harrison / Getty Images.

Rachel Weisz and Daniel Craig get married on the sly

Daniel Craig and Rachel Weisz were married in true James Bond fashion Wednesday with an almost undercover ceremony in New York.

The two reportedly said "I do" with an audience of only four witnesses: two close pals and the couple's children -- Weisz's 4-year-old son, Henry, and Craig's 18-year-old daughter, Ella.

The union, first reported by the Daily Mail, comes as a bit of a surprise -- the two barely went public last year when pictures surfaced of them enjoying the holidays together in the United Kingdom. A Weisz rep confirmed the nuptials to People on Saturday.

Weisz, 41, split last year from "Black Swan" director Darren Aronofsky, her fiance of five years and the father of her child. Craig, 43, and first wife Fiona Loudon, an actress, divorced in 1994.

The newlyweds will play a married couple in "Dream House," due out in September.

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Photo: Life imitates art for Rachel Weisz and Daniel Craig, who portray a married couple in their upcoming movie, "Dream House." Credit: George Kraychyk / Universal Pictures

Daniel Craig dons drag, is interrogated by 'M' about gender equality

Daniel Craig has donned a sundress, clip-on earrings and a blond wig as James Bond in support of Tuesday's 100th anniversary of International Women's Day. 

In the video, Craig stands expressionless in a suit looking straight into the lens as an off-camera narrator recites a litany of statistics illustrating injustices faced by women. And who might the holier-than-thou narrator be? The one and only Judi Dench as "M," the 007 character she has portrayed for more than a decade.

The actor was commissioned for the two-minute clip by Equals, a British coalition of organizations that work together to celebrate holiday on March 8 annually.

About halfway through the clip, M asks, "For someone with such a fondness for women, I wonder if you've ever considered what it means to be one?"

Craig then walks out of frame and comes back dressed in drag — or as the organization puts it, "quite literally, in women's shoes." As the statistics get harsher, he removes the wig and continues to stare off into space.

Sorry, ladies. The dress stays on.

Daniel Craig may be back in action as James Bond

Daniel Craig appears to have the next James Bond film penciled in on his calendar, with MGM announcing Tuesday that it wants to release "Bond 23" in November 2012, 24 Frames reports.

The movie, to be directed by Kate Winslet's ex, Sam Mendes, is penciled in (not inked) because of various issues still floating around, including Craig's busy schedule, the studio's post-bankruptcy reality and possibly some script concerns.

Craig, a perfectly lovely actor who we sometimes just like to stare at, will star in "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo," as well as the summer action flick "Cowboys & Aliens." He followed in Pierce Brosnan's drop-dead-gorgeous spy footsteps, playing Bond in 2006's "Casino Royale" and the 2008 release "Quantum of Solace."

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-- Christie D'Zurilla

Photo: Daniel Craig in a scene from "Cowboys & Aliens," a Western-alien invasion mashup due in summer. Credit: Zade Rosenthal / DreamWorks / Universal Studios

 

 

Report: Daniel Craig signs on to star in 'Girl With the Dragon Tattoo'

Daniel Craig has inked a deal with Sony to play Mikael Blomkvist in the American version of "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo," Deadline Hollywood reports. The agreement reportedly includes options for two sequels -- films to be based on the other books in the late Stieg Larsson's bestselling trilogy. 

Craig appeared with Harrison Ford on Saturday at Comic-Con 2010 in San Diego, delivering, according to Geoff Boucher at Hero Complex, "the nerdvana sight of James Bond and Han Solo side-by-side."

The new trilogy means Craig has almost enough franchises in hand to consider himself a chain: Blomkvist joins James Bond and, with some luck, Zeke Johnson of "Cowboys & Indians" in the actor's stable of recurring characters.

The Ministry is pleased to use this news to present you with a large picture of, you know, Daniel Craig. And his forearms.

You're welcome.

-- Christie D'Zurilla

Photo: Daniel Craig walks onstage for the "Cowboys & Aliens" panel discussion during Comic-Con on July 24, 2010, in San Diego. Credit: Kevin Winter / Getty Images

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And one for the Stieg Larsson fans -- check out a picture gallery of things hot and Swedish:

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In the mood for some gratuitous beefcake and cheesecake? We have you covered -- and others, ahem, uncovered.

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