Desperate to have Daniel Craig return as Agent 007, Sony has reportedly doubled their previous offer to get Craig to sign on for two more films.

In May, reports indicated that Craig turned down £68 million to return to the role of James Bond. Craig told one interviewer that he'd rather slit his wrists than do another Bond film, but some have said that the quote was taken out of context and Craig was referring to doing another film so soon after the completion of 'Spectre', which was said to be a grueling experience. Business Insider is now reporting that Sony has upped their offer to £150 million to get Craig to agree to two more films.

A source told Radar Online that MGM and Sony are greatly pleased with the job Craig has done in his four films as Bond, and they want him to continue while they phase in another actor as a potential successor,

The studio is desperate to secure the actor’s services while they phase in a younger long-term successor.

Everyone knows how much executives adore him, and the idea of losing him at such a crucial time in the franchise isn’t an option as far as all the studio honchos are concerned.

Daniel’s the key for a seamless, safe transition as far as Sony and Bond bosses are concerned, and they’re prepared to pay a king’s ransom to make it happen.

It has been a long-held, though often disproved, fan theory that "James Bond" is a code name given to whichever agent holds the 007 distinction, giving reason to the multi-decade and multi-faced run of the character. Though that theory has been proven false many times in previous films, and since the 'Casino Royale' reboot it has been shown several times that his name truly is James Bond, the quotes from the source could be taken that the fan-theory might be adopted in order to introduce a younger star.

Younger actors rumored to be in contention for the role include Tom Hiddleston, who denied reports that he had meetings with producers, and 'Billy Elliot' and 'Fantastic Four' star Jamie Bell who is said to be an 8 to 1 odds favorite.

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