Sam Mendes admits he wouldn't have cast Daniel Craig as Bond

Sam Mendes revealed today that he was initially sceptical of the casting of Daniel Craig as James Bond in Casino Royale , despite having worked with him on The Road To Perdition .

"I was one of the people who said I didn't think he was the right casting," he admitted from the set at Pinewood.

"At the time I was asked in an interview and I said I'm not sure, I would have advised him not to do it. I was completely wrong."

But the director of the 23rd Bond film, Skyfall , confessed that he'd been able to congratulate Craig after his first outing. "I bumped into him after Casino Royale and I was so excited [ to see him as Bond ]. To watch him go through that intense pressure of being cast as Bond with flying colours...it was great to see him come through that and prove the doubters wrong."

Craig hasn't held it against Mendes. He praised the director for his calmness on set of Skyfall . "I've got an awful lot to worry about on a movie like this and what working with Sam has allowed me to do is just concentrate on the job."

Skyfall opens on 26 October 2012.