Hugh Jackman on rumors of taking steroids for the role of Wolverine

Anyone who has seen the X-Men movies and seen Hugh Jackman as the claw-wielding mutant Wolverine will see that he's incredibly muscular. Hugh Jackman has vehemently denied taking steroids to put on that kind of muscle tone.

During a recent interview with Chris Wallace on the HBO program Who's Talking to Chris Wallace, Hugh Jackman stated he has never taken steroids to put on that kind of muscle tone. Wallace asked "Over the years, people have wondered did he juice? Did he take steroids?" Jackman answered flat out "No, I love my job and I love Wolverine. I got to be careful what I say here, but I had been told anecdotally what the side effects are of that. And I was like 'I don't love it that much.' So no, I just did it the old school way. And I tell you, I've eaten more chickens - I'm so sorry to all the vegans and vegetarians and to the chickens of the world. Literally the karma is not good for me. If the deity has anything related to chickens, I'm in trouble."

Also in the interview, he admitted he studied wolves after accepting the role of Wolverine ahead of the 2000 film X-Men. "I had never read the comic book, I got the part. I didn't really know anything about...I didn't, in Australia, we don't have wolverines. I didn't know that was a real animal. I'd never heard of a wolverine. I thought it was a made-up animal. You know, like, he's got man hands of steel, made up. And so I was passing as I was doing rehearsal at the Imax, they had this documentary about wolves. And I was like, perfect, because obviously I'm a wolf, part wolf. So I went [to set] with all these wolf moves and I was doing these moves, and the director said 'What are you doing?' And I said 'Well, I was just thinking wolves are always looking like this because they're actually smelling, they've got their nose to the ground. That's why they're looking like this all the time. And he goes 'What do you mean a wolf?' And I said 'Well, you know, Wolverine - I'm part wolf, so...' and he goes 'No, you're a wolverine'."

Hugh Jackman is bringing back his iconic role as the claw-wielding mutant Wolverine alongside Deadpool in Deadpool 3. He has to wait, however, after he concludes his Broadway run of The Music Man

Steve Harris is against the concept of "pay to play"

This is a ridiculous concept where bands literally have to pay money just to play to people. Iron Maiden bassist Steve Harris is strongly against it.

Recent news stated a band called The Raskins is suing Motley Crue because they had to pay $1 million dollars to join Crue's tour. This opening band stated that Motley Crue ran out on stage with monkey masks on and "sprayed water guns filled with urine" at them. This band had opened for Crue in 2014 and are also stating that, in addition to the high fee they had to "pay to play", they had to play short sets in arenas that were mostly empty when managers refused to open the doors. The PA (public address) system was turned off or messed with during their concerts. The band was not allowed to sell their own merchandise or were given dressing rooms. They were even hit with heavy equipment.

This practice is known as "pay-to-play". According to newspaper The Berkeley Beacon, "Pay-to-play is a business strategy that some concert promoters use, claiming it as a foolproof way to get an audience to a show. It can work a couple of ways. When someone books a big name [artist], who will definitely sell out the venue, an unknown band can pay a lot of money upfront to be put on the bill as the opening act. The hope is that by playing for such a large audience, the opener will make up the difference in new fans. The other type of pay-to-play is when the promoter will only let a band onto a bill if they can sell a quota of tickets. In the past, [a company such as the] Keynote Company has required openers to sell up to $300 worth of tickets for a show, cutting them only $50 if they are successful. This can be extremely detrimental for newer artists, who inevitably end up paying for the unsold passes out of pocket. We all know most novice musicians' pockets are pretty empty to start with, so it is a high-risk scenario either way."

One person who is extremely angry and outspoken against this practice is Iron Maiden bassist Steve Harris. He told The Metal Journal in an interview "I hate it when people charge bands to play with them - I hate that. I've never done that and I will never do it. To me, it's just wrong. A band should get at least some expenses to pay a gig, and they shouldn't have to pay to play. I've always been really against that. I've always tried to help people out." When he was asked why Iron Maiden continue to advocate for upcoming musicians, he said "Well, because we can. Anybody who's in a position Maiden is, any band that can potentially take another band on tour, you can help people. It doesn't take much effort to do that." Harris is also of the firm belief that it's one way to repay the music world for his "fantastic life and career. I've worked very hard, but maybe I've had a bit of luck along the way. At the end of the day it's nice to give something back."

Glenn Hughes is celebrating 25 years of sobriety

Glenn Hughes was known for his massive drug addiction. It came as a surprise to a lot of people when they found out he had gotten sober. And has been sober for now, so far, 25 years.

He said "G'mornin everyone. so full of gratitude, for these past 25 years of clean & sober living. I give thx each & every morning, for another day on planet earth. sending my love to my sober brothers & sisters, and more importantly to those who are still suffering. #loveistheanswer". He posted this on his Twitter account. He even received congratulations from various people in the music industry, including Frank Bello of Anthrax.

In a 2016 Wikipedia: Fact or Fiction segment on Loudwire, Hughes talked about his years of substance abuse and the path to sobriety he currently walks. "I can't remember the 80s." He's been with various bands over the years, including Deep Purple, Black Sabbath, The Dead Daisies, California Breed and Black County Communion. You can read more about the path to sobriety he chose to walk in the excellent autobiography Glenn Hughes: The Autobiography: From Deep Purple to Black County Communion. In it he does not hold back on what it is like to be an addict. He lays it all out on what it's truly like to be addicted to drugs. It's written by him and Joel McIver.

Getting to Know Sebastian Vettel Better

Here are some things you may or may not know about former Formula 1 driver Sebastian Vettel.

In an interview with F1 correspondent and presenter Lawrence Barretto, he learns more than ever about the media shy driver.

By the way, if you see that words like "sceptical" or "organising" are misspelled, he spelled them that way. It's most likely the European spelling of those words instead of American English spelling

He loves to take notes

"When you write with a pen, it's like you write it into your head"

Mario Thiessen, the man in charge of BMW at the time when Vettel was racing for Formula BMW, noted that Vettel would take notes about everything. He would scribble notes about every session and bring them to the following race. He was and still is a note taker. "In general, I love to take notes. I take digital notes with an iPad a bit now, but I prefer just pen and paper. When you write with a pen, it's like you write it into your head, you remember it. Also, these days, the hardware in the iPad or computer changes so often and while I'm very organised in life, with that stuff, I'm not so organised. So I don't have folders to keep for the next generation of computer/platform, and so a lot of the stuff gets lost. But if I write it down, I'm not going to chuck the notebooks away. I still have the notebooks from 2007 and so on. They're useless now, but they are still there. They are still stacked up in a bookshelf."

He has a love / hate relationship with technology

"It's designed to give you more time, but it actually does the opposite"

"I'm quite a fan of the written word. I get the whole point of emails but I think the actual letter is very nice and very personal." Vettel has a clear opinion on emails and technology. While he does acknowledge technology does makes things faster and better, he does say technological advances "are great, it has helped us to be so much faster and more efficient". He thinks it's a "fine line". To explain further, he means there is some negative impact. "A lot of the stuff is designed to actually steal your time to get you hooked. It annoys me, so I'm not a fan of that. Ultimately there is no solution, there is only yourself, and your behavior with the tools you have and the funny thing is that a lot of the stuff is designed to make life simpler and give you more time, but it actually does the opposite, it makes life complicated. I use the stuff, and I think some of the stuff is great, but sometimes I wish it didn't exist so there wouldn't be the temptation. So I think it's a fine line. It allows us to do a lot of stuff, so generally it's progressive and happy to go forward - I don't think we should go back to only pen and paper but I just think as a side effect, it speeds up life in areas where it shouldn't and that's not good for us, for the bigger picture, for our stress and our health."

His take on mobile phones

"If it's an emergency, you get a hold of people, but nowadays we treat everything as if it's an emergency"

Kimi Raikkonen, Vettel's former teammate but good friend is not a fan of phones either. It's particularly text messages that Raikkonen doesn't like. So if you plan on texting either one of these guys, don't expect a quick reply, you simply won't get it. Raikkonen is of the mindset that if someone has something dire that needs to be said, they will call. Vettel thinks the same way.

"How many times does your phone ring in a day? Almost never. And it's supposed to be a phone and now it's doing everything else. What I mean is, if it's an emergency, you get a hold of people, but nowadays we treat everything as if it's an emergency, but we actually don't act the same way about it. People send an email and they want a reply straight away, but it's not important. Not all the emails are important."

Considering the latest technology, such as the Apple iPhone? Does he have it? "I do. To be honest, the main motivator for that is the camera. I tried to go back to digital camera because I hated the fact you could do everything with your phone. I would say the coolest thing about phone is maps. I really love directions and stuff like this. And then the pictures, which allows you to capture a moment, especially with kids and so on. I think that's great. It's also very small. I went back to a digital camera, but it's quite clumsy to have in your pocket."

Why he avoids social media

"I have never tried it, so I'm not missing it"

Vettel is the only driver in Formula 1 not to have some sort of presence on social media. That even extends to the point of having apps to follow other people. The various forms of social media hold no interest for him. "I'm not big on apps, so I don't have lots of apps on phones. I don't do social media and also don't do the social media apps, so I'm not following other people."

"I never tried it and I think it's a good thing because a lot of people tell me they can't get away from it. I have never tried it so I'm not missing it. I've seen how it works with other people roughly and as far as I can tell, it's done in a way that obviously you're addicted. So yeah. Not for me."

He's a massive bookworm

"I have to finish it, because otherwise I feel guilty"

Vettel says he enjoys watching Netflix, but not often, like some people do. If has has the time, his preference is reading - which means reading actual newspapers or physical books rather than the electronic newspapers or books. "I'm a big fan of Sunday newspapers. I don't read news online, more newspaper. A lot of the news nowadays are just headlines, there's actually no content. Nothing against the journalists behind it, but it's mostly the headline, then it's repeating the headline, but actually no new information in the article. That's why Sunday newspapers or certain magazines are good - you know they have to do proper research. I read about all sorts. I don't like one particular subject. It's more about the people I find interesting. If this guy looks funny, I read the article. Of course the headline grabs you as well and then you read. But once I've started, I have to finish it. I have to finish the article, even if it bores me and it's stupid. I always hope it gets better, so I have to finish it, because otherwise I'd feel guilty. I shouldn't - that I haven't read the whole thing. I can't judge until I've read everything."

His attitude towards food

"When I was young, I just accepted it as fuel"

He's simple in his tastes for food. When he's at home, he prefers to cook his own food. One of his weaknesses is pancakes the way his mother used to make them. As he's grown up, his take on food had changed. "When I was young, I just accepted it as fuel. Being a sportsman, you get the fact it literally becomes fuel, you fuel your body to perform blah blah blah, so you try to get the best mix to enhance your performance and have a positive impact on your health. But going even further, I think there is more dynamics around this, as to where does the food come from? To become aware of what you're eating, not just which ingredients, how many calories and what it does to my body, but where does it come from? How was it grown? How was the animal grown/treated? That I find is not yet presented enough in our society, and should be. Now it's completely left to the consumer in a way. But I think there should be some way of organising where you take responsibility a bit away from the consumer, and equally the consumer should be educated more, awareness should be improved so you can make better decisions in a big picture."

Travelling often makes it hard to eat local. "Travelling is the b---- really, as you don't always have the time to look behind the scenes." When he's at home in Switzerland, he makes an effort to eat local and meet the local farmers. "I go to meet them, and see what they do. I want to first-hand convince myself, not that I'm super sceptical with everything, but you're more at peace with yourself. If you have seen it, if you see how it works, and you've spoken to the guy, and you think generally it stacks up, you can make a judgement."

He's unique

He possesses an eagle eye for details and that is what helps Vettel on the F1 grid and seen him take home 53 Grand Prix victories, 120 podiums and four World Championships. It's why he's usually the last driver to leave a circuit; he wants to talk to the team engineers, the team principals and so on. He's busy asking questions about the ins and outs of his car or the strategies the team principals or engineers have. Michael Schumacher, his hero, was successful. Vettel wants to be like him in that sense

Valtteri Bottas Believes That Formula 1 Caused Him to Develop an Eating Disorder

Valtteri Bottas, a Formula 1 driver on the Alfa Romeo team, believes Formula 1 caused him to develop an eating disorder

Three points related to this include: he went to extremes to keep his body weight low early in his career, he is of the firm belief he developed an eating disorder that has gone undiagnosed and the limits on drivers' weights have been strict, but have relaxed in years past

Valtteri Bottas is a happier, and also healthier driver in Formula 1. In his home country of Finland, Bottas did a recent interview where he stated that, early in his career, he pushed himself to extreme limits to keep his weight down. Because of this, he developed an undiagnosed eating disorder. "I trained myself to pain, physically and mentally. It got out of hand, and became an addiction. No eating disorder was officially diagnosed, but it was definitely there." Between long workouts, he would only eat steamed broccoli and other diet choices from the team he was on. "It wasn't very healthy. I wanted to be the best, and I thought I had to do that. If the team says that I have to weigh 68 kilos (150 pounds) and I naturally weigh 73 kilos (161 pounds), then they will do everything for that."

Size and weight limits in Formula 1 are strict, but have been improved

Any extra weight slows the car down, so teams want their drivers lightweight and streamlined. That means the drivers have to train hard to keep their bodies in top condition, which means being at or below the 161 pound minimum. If they're under that, weights must be added to the cars to reach the required weight.

Bottas does not have the height of other drivers. He's only 5'8'' while Thai-British driver Alexander Albon is listed as 6'2''. Bottas has more bulky muscle behind him, though. Thankfully, F1 has made a change to the rule about weight. The minimum weight is now 80 kgs (171 pounds), including the fireproof gear they wear. The gear the drivers wear is 15 pounds (7 kgs) and this figures in with the drivers' weight

Bottas describes his second year in Formula 1, 2014, as being especially hard. That season had strict requirements on weight, meaning heavier drivers were even more under the gun to lose weight. That year saw Daniel Ricciardo being forced to lose weight to get his weight down by at least 4.5 pounds (2 kilos). Ricciardo was 5'10'' and weighed 143 pounds (65 kilos). The drivers had extreme pressure on them to keep their weight down otherwise their jobs were on the line. Because of his size, 6' and 165 pound (75 kg) driver Nico Hulkenberg was, supposedly, kept from a position on the McLaren team because of his size. Then McLaren CEO Martin Whitmarsh said in a 2013 Sky Sports interview "Heavier drivers will be less attractive. It has happened by accident. We have raised the minimum weight, but the new powertrains are heavier than people expected, and now have a situation where heavier drivers could be a disadvantage."

In his 2007 autobiography, former McLaren and Red Bull Racing driver David Coulthard said that what he put himself through as a teen trying to get into Formula 1, including conditions sounding too close to bulimia. "It was an essential part of being an oversized teenager in karting, making weight. I would have my dinner, weigh myself and if I was too heavy, I'd go swimming and exercise and try to control my weight by being sick."

Bottas said that the rule changes in 2019 helped immensely. He stated they helped his immune system because he was not cutting as much weight off. "I think the regulation is good, especially for the taller drivers. It makes life a bit easier. Many drivers had to be below our natural weight, and it is very easy to get ill or sick. This is the first winter for many years that I didn't get any flu or any sickness."

James Jagger admits to being embarrassed about being Mick Jagger's son

Sometimes it's hard to be a rock star's son or daughter. James Jagger certainly admits he is embarrassed to be the son of Rolling Stones front man Mick Jagger

James, who mother is model Jerry Hall, opened up in a new interview with OK Magazine, stating what it is like growing up with the sort of attention that comes with his father in the Rolling Stones and how uncomfortable it often made him feel. "I'm incredibly proud to be a member of the family. I absolutely adore my dad and I'm incredibly proud of all his achievements, so I'm proud to be his son. At times, you kind of wish you had more anononymity and, when you're a teenager, it can be embarrassing at times, but I've gotten over it." He talked about the struggle to make a name for himself in the entertainment world, being saddled with a famous last name, and how that acted as more of a hindrance than a help. "If you come from any family with a name, the British press prefer to shoot you down. They want a working class hero to be successful, a boy done good, not someone from a family of entertainers."

Certainly he's done good for himself, despite his last name.

February Birthdays

Since it's February, time to say Happy Birthday

George Russell

-Birth name: George William Russell

-DOB: 2/15/1998

-Where: King's Lynn, Norfolk, England

-Has a brother named Benjy

Pierre Gasly

-Birth name: Pierre Jean-Jean Gasly

-DOB: 2/7/1996

-Where: Rouen, France

-Like many Formula 1 drivers, as a child he was involved with go karting

Tony Iommi

-Birth name: Anthony Frank Iommi

-DOB: 2/19/1948

-Where: Aston, Birmingham, England

-He is one of the founding members of Black Sabbath

Paul Wight

-Birth name: Paul Donald Wight II

-DOB: 2/8/1972

-Where: Aiken, South Carolina

-Wrestled under the moniker "The Giant" because of his massive size

Rod Smallwood

-Birth name: Roderick Charles Smallwood

-DOB: 2/17/1950

-Where: Huddersfield, Yorkshire, England

-Like Andy Taylor, Rod's father was a policeman

Adrian Smith

-Birth name: Adrian Frederick Smith

-DOB: 2/27/1957

-Where: Hackney, London, England

-He was initially considered by close friend Phil Collen as a future member of Def Leppard when the band first formed, but at the time, Smith had joined Iron Maiden

Alice Cooper

-Birth name: Vincent Damon Furnier

-DOB: 2/4/1948

-Where: Detroit, Michigan

-His father is a preacher

Alan Rickman

-Birth name: Alan Sidney Patrick Rickman

-DOB: 2/21/1946

-Where: London, England

-DOD: 1/14/2016

-Where: London, England

-He was J.K. Rowling's initial choice to play the role of Professor Severus Snape. In fact, she envisioned him while writing this character. And he got the role in Harry Potter and The Sorcerer's Stone only because Tim Roth, who was originally considered for the role, backed out to star in 2001's Planet of the Apes

Steve Irwin

-Birth name: Stephen Robert Irwin

-DOB: 2/22/1962

-Where: Upper Ferntree Gully, Australia

-DOD: 9/4/2006

-Where: Batt Reef, Australia

-He was known for his strong love of animals

George Harrison

-DOB: 2/25/1943

-Where: Liverpool, England

-DOD: 11/29/2001

-Where: Los Angeles, California

-The place of death on his death certificate was falsified to keep his home from becoming a Beatles shrine

Henry Rollins

-Birth name: Henry Lawrence Garfield

-DOB: 2/13/1961

-Where: Washington, D.C.

-He started working out at the Bullis School in tenth grade at the suggestion of a Vietnam vet who was also a history teacher

Rickey Medlocke

-DOB: 2/17/1950

-Where: Jacksonville, Florida

-During his first run with Lynyrd Skynyrd, from 1971-1972, he played drums

Billie Joe Armstrong

-DOB: 2/17/1972

-Where: Oakland, California

-Wrote "Wake Me Up When September Ends" about losing his father

Johnny Van Zandt

-Birth name: John Roy Van Zant

-DOB: 2/27/1960

-Where: Jacksonville, Florida

-His older brothers are former Lynyrd Skynyrd vocalist and founding member Ronnie Van Zant and .38 Special vocalist Donnie Van Zant

Steve Harris on Iron Maiden / Judas Priest co-headline tour

Anyone who is a fan of both Judas Priest and Iron Maiden will probably be thinking this thought or something similar: TAKE MY MONEY NOW!! Iron Maiden bassist talks about the possibility of these two veteran metal bands doing a co-headline tour. When asked about the idea of an Iron Maiden-Judas Priest co-headline tour, Steve Harris replied "Why not?"

Harris, who has a band outside of Iron Maiden called British Lions, has released their second album, The Burning. During an interview with Eddie Trunk on Sirius XM's Trunk Nation, he admitted he had seen Rob Halford's comments on hoping for a co-headline tour. He said, with a shrug "So, I don't know. I suppose the management has gotta get their heads together and [make] something like that [happen]. But, yeah, why not? I suppose the fans can push for it to happen. But we'll see."

If this tour does happen, it would mark the first time in music history that two titans of metal would be touring together. The first time it happened in 1981 when Priest was touring in support of Point of Entry and Iron Maiden were touring in support of Killers. Looking back on those times, nearly 40 years later, Harris remarked "[I have] lots of good memories and I really love that album-Point of Entry. Some people don't think it's their favorite Priest album, but I suppose because we were on tour [with Priest at the time] really liked it."

2020 was a busy year for Harris. His side band British Lion released their second album The Burning. It was the first album they released since their 2012 debut. They'll be touring in support of it. When that concludes, it's back to all things Maiden

James Jagger on the show Vinyl: "I'm not rabble-rouser"

James Jagger, who strongly resembles his father, is on a new HBO drama called Vinyl, which depicts the life and times of a punk band in 1973 New York

On HBO, debuting Feb. 14 of this year is a drama called Vinyl, which centers around a record executive, played by Bobby Cannavale, who is trying to navigate trying to sell his label and the 1973 punk explosion in New York. One of the punks he runs into is Kip, played by James Jagger. When he comes on stage, those watching, especially those who are fans of The Rolling Stones, might notice something eerie-there's a lot of similarities between Kip on stage and Mick Jagger on stage. Juno Temple plays an A&R assistant he's seeing. When asked what he cares about, his reply is "Fighting, f---ing. Nothing."

During an interview with W Magazine, James Jagger lays it out about filming, the 1970s, his father.

Magazine: The pilot is almost two hours long. It is so cinematic. And that last scene...

James: It really makes you want to see what comes next. At the same time, it's one of the cheapest Martin Scorsese movies ever made [laughs]

Magazine: Your character is a little bit of an anarchist, a little bit of a nihilist. Was it hard to get into his head?

James: It was definitely a process, and it was definitely fun to play. I don't think it was super hard to get into his head per se, but there were some elements that were unpleasant. He's got a huge amount of pain; it can be a little tiring to wear that. The thing I found was that when you've to portray someone cold and unpleasant, I ended up feeling bad for the other actors I was playing against. I have to go give Juno a hug at the end of the day. To be like "All's fair in love and war..."

Magazine: "...and acting."

James: Exactly

Magazine: Kip seems pure, like the effects of the heroin he shoots.

James: There's a lot more to him. He puts up a very strong front, but I feel like as the season progresses the character really does have a bit of a revolution. He's definitely pure, but he's kind of burnt as well-there's a kind of jadedness, too.

Magazine: Did you base him on anyone?

James: Not as I'm playing him, but there're certainly bits and pieces I took from people of that era. In particular, maybe...I dunno, I identify with Richard Hell [American punk musician] at times. But Kip is definitely his own person. Musically, there are other influences.

Magazine: I read that you wrote the song Kip's band, The Nasty Bits, plays?

James: Yes. One of them is played in the pilot, when we have a lot of s--- thrown at us onstage [laughs]

Magazine: Does it sound anything like the music you write?

James: With my band? I wouldn't say so. We really tried to write something to fit with the cultural backdrop of that time. I'm no longer playing with those guys, but we used to play around a bit more with fantastical, esoteric things rather than kitchen-sink drama, which is what The Nasty Bits play with.

Magazine: When you're performing onstage as Kip, with your makeup, you do resemble your father quite a bit.

James: I got asked in an interview whether I try to play up my likeness to him. [laughs]. Yes, I'm using my acting prowess to play up my likeness to my father, it was nothing to do with the fact that I'm his son. I thought that was quite funny. 

Magazine: Did he have any insights in to the scene to share with you?

James: He was really open about that time. I riffed with him about New York during that period. He had a few good anecdotes, but he's also really into his history. He really had a grasp on what was going on politically and socially. It was all really helpful for me.

Magazine: Your comment recently that you prefer The Kinks to The Rolling Stones has caused a lot of controversy on the Internet.

James: It was totally a tongue-in-cheek comment! I was asked whether I prefer The Beatles or The Rolling Stones. That's the question I'm asked constantly. So my response was flatly, with a straight face, "I prefer The Kinks." You know? Like, I don't know...

Magazine: And now everyone's misconstrued your joke.

James: I guess so. It's just a ridiculous thing. I love all three bands. Why should you have to choose? Why do you have to be a cat or a dog person, they're both great animals.

Magazine: How did you get involved with Project Zero?

James: I started working with them three years ago. I thought it was such an exciting new way to approach maritime conservation.

Magazine: Now you're on the board of directors. Is it in your nature to organize and cheerlead? You seem pretty laid back.

James: No, it's just something I'm passionate about. I'm not a rabble-rouser in any way.

Magazine: Right, you've always kept a low profile. With this role-with your father and Martin Scorsese involved-you must've known your cover would be blown.

James: Yeah. I've always enjoyed anonymity. But it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to work with Marty. I don't know anyone who would say no, despite any weird moments I might experience on public transport.

No Time to Die (2021)

The most recent installment in the James Bond series

Summary

-James Bond has left the service to retire in Jamaica. He's drawn back into active service when an old friend from the CIA, Felix Leiter, shows up, asking for assistance. It's regarding a dangerous new villain with access to dangerous new technology

Cast

-Daniel Craig: James Bond

-Ana de Armas: Paloma

-Lea Seydoux: Madeleine

-Rami Malek: Lyutsifer Safin

-Lashana Lynch: Nomi

-Ralph Fiennes: M

-Ben Whishaw: Q

-Naomie Harris: Moneypenny

-Rory Kinnear: Tanner

-Jeffrey Wright: Felix Leiter

-Billy Magnussen: Logan Ash

-Christoph Waltz: Blofeld

Did You Know?

-Daniel Craig said he would retire from the role of James Bond if he became too old to play the character. He said it was becoming harder to stay fit enough to play this role and more stunt doubles were used for action scenes

-The mask worn by Safin (Rami Malek) is a Japanese Noh mask. This led people to believe he was a new incarnation of the first Bond villain Dr. Julius No

-Daniel Craig had injured his ankle while filming in Jamaica in 2019. In a 2021 interview, he said that he had not injured his ankle, which required surgery, during the filming of an action sequence. He had actually injured his ankle by simply tripping over something and breaking his ankle. The media reported it as an injury while filming an action scene

-This is the fifth film in which Daniel Craig plays James Bond. His first film was 2006's Casino Royale. This would make Daniel Craig the longest running actor to play James Bond

-At the home in Jamaica where James Bond lives there is a writing desk. It's said to be a replica of the writing desk Ian Fleming used to write all of the James Bond novels. The real writing desk resides at GoldenEye, the home in Jamaica owned by Fleming

-Rami Malek had to wear a wig to hide his short hair during the photography for the movie as he was filming the fourth and final season of the TV series Mr. Robot

-One of the stunt drivers here is Jessica Hawkins, who was picked by stunt coordinator Lee Morrison. He hand picked Hawkins from the Formula 3 W series, which is exactly like Formula 1 racing only all the teams in the W series are women. She stated "It doesn't get any more exhilarating than being a stunt driver in a James Bond movie and it's an honor to be a part of this incredible movie driving the new Defender."

-The only major change to the Land Rover Defender in this film is a roll cage for safety

-Rami Malek's character's name Safin is of Arabic descent. It can also be spelled "Safeen". Actor Rami Malek was born in Egypt, which is an Arab country. He can even speak the language of Masri, which is Egyptian Arabic

-The two cats owned by Q are Hairless Egyptian Sphynx cats. This is the exact same breed of cat that was named Mr. Bigglesworth in the Austin Powers spoof series. The cat from the Austin Powers series is also spoofed on the cat that Blofeld owns, which was a blue eyed, white haired Chinchilla Turkish Angora Persian cat

-When this movie was released, Daniel Craig was 53 at the time, making him one of the older actors to play James Bond

-This was the first James Bond film to be released after the deaths of Sir Roger Moore, who died on 5/23/2017 and Sir Sean Connery, who died on 10/31/2020

-The first film in the James Bond series to feature two female characters in a lead role who are black. Naomie Harris and Lashana Lynch play Eve Moneypenny and Nomi

-The film was scheduled to premier in China in April 2020, but had to be canceled due to the COVID-19 outbreak

-The third film in the James Bond series to feature Ben Whishaw (Q), Ralph Fiennes (M), Jeffrey Wright (Felix Leiter) and Naomie Harris (Eve Moneypenny)

-Out of all the actors to play James Bond, George Lazenby and Daniel Craig are the only actors seen driving an Aston Martin in the movies they appear in. The only film George Lazenby appeared in was On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969)

-This film features the first Double-O agent played by a black person. That person is Lashana Lynch, who plays Nomi. She is of African and Jamaican descent

-Cary Joji Fukunaga is the first director of Asian descent to direct a James Bond film. This film features a lot of references to Japanese culture, such as a Noh mask and a ceremonial costume

-This is the first film in the James Bond series to feature a black person playing both Felix Leiter and Moneypenny in the same movie