Daniel Craig will star in his fifth and final James Bond film “No Time to Die,” which will open in Philippine cinemas on Dec. 15.

“In No Time To Die,” Bond has left active service and is enjoying a quiet life in Jamaica. However, his peace is short-lived when his old friend Felix Leiter from the CIA shows up to ask for his help.

The mission is to rescue a kidnapped scientist, which turns out to be far more dangerous and leads Bond onto the trail of a mysterious villain known as Safin armed with dangerous new technology.

The film, directed by Cary Fukunaga, brings together returning cast from previous Bond films including Léa Seydoux, Naomie Harris, Ben Whishaw, Ralph Fiennes, Rory Kinnear, Christoph Waltz and Jeffrey Wright.

Seydoux, who plays Madeleine Swann, is an intelligent and highly-capable psychologist who stands as the most significant other in Bond’s life.

“Madeleine is happy she’s with Bond, and we think that they are united for the best,” she said. “But we’ll find out that they have problems to solve, and I think that in ‘No Time To Die’ we learn more about their intimacy, in a way.”

Another significant woman in Bond’s life is Harris’ Moneypenny. She is now settled in her position as M’s right-hand woman, though her loyalty to Bond remains untarnished.

“I think it’s absolutely brilliant that the women in this movie play such a central role. They are so important to driving the story forward. They are bad-ass. They are formidable, strong and confident women. Throughout this film you know Bond would not have survived without the help of the various women that helped him along the way,” she said.

Whishaw, who plays Q, a bond ally, said, “Q’s always caught between Bond, and what he’s told to do by M,. Always his loyalty is with Bond; there’s a real affection there, which I think comes out in this film quite a lot.”

Fiennes reprises his role as M and said he was more than impressed with the story ideas on which Fukunaga wanted to concentrate.

“When Cary got on the phone with me and told me the story, I must say I thought it was very strong,” he said. who stars in his third consecutive Bond film.

Kinnear plays Tanner, another long-serving MI6 employee. He said, “There is that sense of tying up loose ends and there is a sense of family in many ways— that family of MI6, for one. The story looks at what loyalty requires of you, what it can take from you, and what it can do to your own personal life as well as your working life.”

Also returning is the hero’s most famous nemesis Blofeld, who debuted on screen in 1963’s “From Russia With Love,” and whose first overt connection to the Daniel Craig’s films began in “Spectre,” where he provided important insights into Bond’s upbringing and the pain he has suffered from “Casino Royale” onwards. Christoph Waltz comes back for a second outing after the character’s incarceration at the end of the last movie.

Wright returns as Leiter in “No Time To Die.” He said, “With Felix and James there is a sense of fraternal kinship. They are almost like brothers in a very select circle. The story looks at this love for one another and respect for one another. Also, I think, there’s a love for the game.”

From Universal Pictures International (PH), “No Time to Die” opens Dec. 15 in Philippine theaters nationwide.