Daniel Craig Says He Won’t Leave His Kids His Fortune

Daniel Craig does not plan to leave his wealth to his children due to a fundamental dislike of inheritance, he says. The 53-year-old actor spoke about his plans in a recent interview with Candis Magazine. He said that he plans to simply “get rid of” his fortune rather than leaving his children a lifetime’s worth of money.

“I don’t want to leave great sums to the next generation,” Craig said. “I think inheritance is quite distasteful. My philosophy is get rid of it or give it away before you go… Isn’t there an old adage that if you die a rich person, you’ve failed?” Craig did not leave any hints about how he might give his money away when the time comes, though there are undoubtedly now some charities keeping a close eye on the actor.

Craig has become a wealthy man thanks to his time as an A-list actor, particularly through the James Bond franchise. During the interview, he mentioned American industrialist Andrew Carnegie, who he recalled had given away a massive fortune before his death in charitable donations. To Craig, this “shows how rich he was because I’ll bet he kept some of it, too.”

Craig has two children — a 29-year-old daughter named Ella from his marriage to Fiona Loudon, and a 3-year-old daughter with his current wife Rachel Weisz. Weisz also has a 15-year-old son from her previous marriage to director Darren Aronofsky. So far, none of these kids have commented on Craig’s public revelation that they will not be getting a big inheritance.

CelebrityNetWorth.com estimates Craig’s net worth at $160 million. According to a report by GQ, he was paid $25 million to reprise his role as James Bond one more time in No Time to Die. After several delays, the movie is slated to hit theaters in October at last.

Although it is the source of most of that wealth, Craig has disparaged the James Bond franchise at times. In June, he told interviewers from Total Film that he did not expect to return for this last movie. He said: “I thought I probably was physically not capable of doing another. For me, it was very cut and dried that I wasn’t coming back.”

Craig’s comments are already making waves on social media. One person tweeted: “His money would’ve already provided so much for his kids… safety, a mansion to live in, anything their hearts desire but most importantly, a very good education and contacts… you may not be leaving them anything but they’ve already benefitted far beyond most of us dream.” Another added: “Why wouldn’t he teach them to use it to generate more wealth and give even more away?”