Daniel Craig, the 40-year-old, fair-haired James Bond, with the piercing blue eyes, is back for more with the new Bond installment, Quantum Of Solace, the high-octane adventure that began in Casino Royale. The film leads Bond to Austria, Italy and South America, where he is running interference on bad guys messing up the world economy. Staring a jam-packed holiday season of movies, Quantum of Solace opens on November 14.

Delaware County Magazine: Can we expect a more sensitive Bond guy from you this time around?

Daniel Craig: No. There's revenge. You know, there's a fight within him. And there's a need to do his job, and to solve this riddle that's been given to him. Because, basically everything he understood about the world, has been turned upside down. And all this points towards a bad organization that's trying to undermine the world's economies, by trying to control money around the world in a very secretive way. And he's after them.

DCM: How much pressure do you feel to live up to the last movie?

Craig: As much as before; if not a little more. Because we had a major success, and people reacted beyond how we thought they would. We always knew we had a great movie, but who knew that people would respond the way they did. And my feeling is that we owe it to the people who saw the last one, to give them something better.

DCM: Do you think he can lighten up a little bit now?

Craig: Ah, no. I mean, of course we can do anything, but writing gags for a movie like this is wrong. The Bond clichés, we can put in as long as we earn them, and this is not what this has been about. But there are a few gags in there. There are some belly laughs in there. Somewhere.

DCM: Did the success of the last movie surprise you?

Craig: It surprised me in the sense that I've never been in a situation like that before, so how could I have a benchmark to go on. So it was either going to work, or it wasn't going to work. And if it worked we'd make another one, and if it didn't, I'd try something else.

DCM: Any stories to share?

Craig: We were sitting in a bar in Switzerland, and the figures started coming in. And we knew at that point that it was a success. Then it just continued to go up and up, and that’s where the surprise came.

DCM: What did you think watching this film for the first time?

Craig: I’ve seen it about 10 times in every stage from a rough cut with no music or sound, well, sound but rough sound, and then with a temp score and then some sound and special effects. I saw it about two weeks ago and I think Marc has done an amazing job. It’s quick, it’s fast, it answers the questions, it’s emotional in the right place, the action works, and the special effects don’t impose. I was relieved. It’s always a relief.

DCM: They put the gun barrel at the end – what was that like?

Craig: Probably that was the scariest bit. If I was to be totally honest, it’s not the jumping off buildings and the fires and all that. We did it once and it didn’t work so we did it again, and I thought it has to be right and it has to be aggressive and it has to work.

DCM: Is there a sense in your mind that people treat you differently now because you’re Bond?

Craig: It’s worse than ever! No respect, it’s just dreadful! (Laughter). I go home and the only place that matters to me is my private life. My family and my friends treat me as they’ve always treated me. I love it and hate it and all the things that go along with it but I want people to treat me as normally as they can.

DCM: Is it easy to for you to go where you want and do what you want?

Craig: No, but I have a normal life. I can’t do all the things I’d like to do but I have a normal life as I can possibly make it. I struggle to do it but that’s what I do.

DCM: What is a normal life?

Craig: Like everybody else’s. Having family, friends, cooking occasionally (laughs). I could make a list but it would be very boring.

DCM: Are you a good cook?

Craig: Well, I can cook big things and lots of it but I don’t know whether it’s particularly subtle.

DCM: So what's the best thing about being Bond?

Craig: We made a great movie. Simple as that.

DCM: How many more Bond movies are you ready for?

Craig: As long as they are working, I'll keep on making them.

DCM: What happened to your arm? Was it one specific injury?

Craig: Who knows? It could have been any number of things that could have done it. It’s called a slap tear and it goes – 50 percent from the top posterior all the way around into the middle. They have to put six screws in it and it’s a pain because it doesn’t heal quickly.

DCM: So how long will you be wearing a sling?

Craig: I’ll be probably fit by Christmas, but I won’t be able to put any pressure on it like hanging from a train or anything stupid, so…

DCM: So you’re not really working now?

Craig: I don’t want to. It’s time to take it easy.

DCM: Let’s talk about the historical ability to delve into the pain of Bond for the first time. How difficult was this journey?

Craig: It’s not at all difficult. We started off something like Casino Royale. We had a great story and a great book by Ian Fleming that was solid and had a love story in it. And that’s what Quantum of Solace is about – it’s him finding his quantum of solace. He’s not on a vendetta, he’s not after revenge – he’s after finding his place and his relationships with M and Felix and obviously with Mathis and subsequently with Camille in the movie are about solidifying his place in the world and who his allies are.

DCM: What did you think of your costar Olga Kurylenko?

Craig: She’s fantastic. She’s done a great job. She was thrown in the deep end with this and the part was about somebody on a vendetta, somebody with a deep past and they come together – they’re a foil for each other in this because Bond actually isn’t on a vendetta. He’s trying to come to terms with losing the love of his life and kill the bad guys, which obviously goes without saying.

DCM: Which was the most difficult? What was your biggest challenge? There’s fire, water, air…

Craig: I don’t think one was more difficult than the other. Each one came up with a different challenge. The rooftop chase sequences were difficult, it was challenging, it took a long time.

DCM: How much of it was you?

Craig: As much as possible. I hope you can tell it’s me.

DCM: We see your face but there are some dangerous parts in there.

Craig: There were. Well, no, there were never any dangerous parts but we set up rehearsals in a studio where we put up 30 – 40 foot towers and I’m wired and I just jump from areas to areas and then sort of do the other thing which is just jump off the tower. Once we get to Siena, the cranes are up and the wires are up and I jump from one roof to another and I slide down and that’s all me.

DCM: Do the physical challenges get easier? Is it fun or is it just another hard day at work?

Craig: I trained very differently this time. Last time I bulked up and got big to make him look like someone who literally just dropped out of the Navy and was Special Services. I needed to get fitter in a different way for this one, because I do an awful lot of physical activity. So I had to get myself - and I don't want to use these words because it sounds awful - but cardio-vascularly fit. You know, I needed to last the course. So between scenes, I was swinging from ropes. I had to keep myself in as best shape I could, because I had to do this for six months.

DCM: How do you stay fit when you’re not working?

Craig: I keep fit, I don’t at the moment because of this (points to his arm sling), which makes it hard but I am going to the gym every day because I’m in physiotherapy to get this working. I go on holiday, I eat what I want, I drink what I want. I just try and get normal because I think too much working out is bad for you.

DCM: Who is your favorite James Bond?

Craig: Sean Connery.

DCM: Did he give you any advice?

Craig: No, I haven’t spoken to him.

DCM: What are you shooting next?

Craig: Nothing at all. I’m just taking it easy for the moment.

DCM: What do you like to do in your spare time?

Craig: Not bungee jumping or hang-gliding, just relaxing.