British Royals That Daniel Craig & His Wife Rachel Weisz Have Met

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In the James Bond movies, Agent 007 often finds himself having to navigate dangerous situations, famously doing so "for queen and country." Indeed, all 25 canonical Bond films (and two that aren't considered canon) were produced during the record-breaking, 70-year reign of Queen Elizabeth II. While Elizabeth herself never actually appeared in any of them, a number of actors who have played 007 did get the chance to meet her in real life — including Daniel Craig, who starred in the five most recent Bond films to date, released from 2006 to 2021. Plus, Queen Elizabeth is hardly the only royal to cross paths with Craig and his wife, Rachel Weisz.

For example, Craig and Weisz got the chance to meet King Charles III and Queen Consort Camilla Parker Bowles — then the Princes of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall, respectively — at the premiere of "Skyfall" in 2012. Prince William and his wife, Catherine, Princess of Wales, later joined Prince Harry at the premiere of "Spectre" in 2015, where the royals were photographed speaking to Craig and Weisz. Craig once again met then-Prince Charles in 2019 when the latter visited the set of "No Time to Die." Charles, Camilla, William, and Kate Middleton all eventually attended the film's premiere in 2021.

At Wimbledon in 2023, Craig and Weisz' again crossed paths with Kate in a moment that caused a bit of a stir online. While Craig greeted Kate with a respectful handshake, some royal watchers took issue with the fact that he did not stand up from his seat, nor remove his sunglasses. These included Daily Mail editor Richard Eden, who said in an Instagram post that photos of the interaction made him "uneasy."

All that being said, it's Daniel Craig's encounters with the late Queen Elizabeth II that arguably remain the most iconic. Craig first met Elizabeth in 2006, when she attended the premiere of his very first James Bond film, "Casino Royale." Craig, in character as Agent 007, later shared the screen with Elizabeth in a skit shot together for the opening ceremony of the 2012 London Olympics.

Craig later opened up about the experience during an appearance on "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" in February 2022 — seven months before Elizabeth's death at the age of 96. According to Craig, the Queen was a lot funnier than some might expect. "[She] wants to crack a joke, and cracked a joke about me. ... We were having our photographs taken, and she just went, 'Oh, no, he's the one that doesn't smile.'" So, it seems Elizabeth was rather tuned in to the discourse regarding Craig's version of Bond being grittier than previous incarnations. "Fair enough," Craig conceded. He went on to describe "rolling around on the floor" with Elizabeth's corgis. See? He can still have fun.

Notably, while Elizabeth never physically appeared in a proper Bond film, that's not to say she wasn't a fan of them. Speaking to the Express in 2021, royal biographer Gyles Brandreth explained that she loved the earlier ones, though the recent entries were a little too "loud" for her liking. Humorous quips aside, she clearly still had an appreciation for Craig's version of Bond. In her book "The Other Side of the Coin," Elizabeth's longtime dresser Angela Kelly recalled that the Queen jumped at the chance to do the Olympics skit with Craig, and insisted on having a speaking part in it (via People).