London (AFP)

The new James Bond, "Die Can Wait", premieres in London on Tuesday, and this time 007 is on a mission not only to save the world but also cinemas, tested by the lockdowns.

This is the last time Britain's Daniel Craig, 53, slips into the tuxedo of the most famous agent in Her Majesty's service - and the name of his successor remains a mystery.

For this ultimate adventure, he was not spared.

Chases, explosions, shootings ... The trailer suggests an intense episode, rich in stunts and gadgets, in the pure tradition of 007.

With a year and a half late due to the pandemic, this 2 hour 43 minute film - the longest James Bond - will be unveiled in world premiere at the Royal Albert Hall, before its release in British cinemas on Thursday, then October 6 in France.

On the red carpet, producers Michael G. Wilson, Barbara Broccoli and director Cary Joji Fukunaga ("Beasts of No Nation", "True Detective") will meet actors Daniel Craig, Rami Malek and Léa Seydoux as well as singer Billie Eilish who performs the film's official song, also titled "No Time To Die".

American singer Billie Eilish at the MTV Video Music Awards, September 12, 2021 in New York ANGELA WEISS AFP / Archives

Alongside these stars, and Princes Charles and William, caregivers were invited to discover the film in the prestigious performance hall in tribute to their work during the pandemic.

Initially scheduled for March 2020, the release of this 25th episode of the adventures of the secret agent has been postponed several times due to the pandemic.

Its release is therefore eagerly awaited by fans but also by cinema operators who seek to fill their theaters after confinement.

"Agent 007" at the AFP cinema

Daniel Craig told the PA news agency that he hopes the film's release will "give the industry a boost": "In my opinion, the cinema is not going to go away any time soon and if we can help it? 'one way or another I would be very happy.

- "Injured animal" -

The last part of the adventures of James Bond, "Specter", released at the end of 2015, had brought in more than 880 million dollars of receipts in the world, according to the specialized press.

After this film, Daniel Craig had declared that he would rather "cut his veins" than play James Bond again.

Before finally stacking up for a new opus.

Who will take over from now on?

The mystery remains, but for producer Barbara Broccoli, the character must continue to be played by a man.

In this latest film from the Craig era, the character invented by writer Ian Fleming has quit his secret service activities and is enjoying a well-deserved rest in Jamaica.

A tranquility interrupted when his old friend of the CIA, Felix Leiter, comes to ask him for help to save a scientist who has just been kidnapped.

Lashana Lynch, February 9, 2020 in Beverly Hills, Calif. Frazer Harrison Getty / AFP / Archives

Back at work, the famous secret agent has to work with a new and "disarming" colleague, played by Briton Lashana Lynch.

In front of them, a mysterious enemy equipped with high-tech weapons, embodied by the American of Egyptian origin Rami Malek, Oscar for best actor in 2019 for his interpretation of singer Freddie Mercury.

The conquest of Bond since "Specter", the psychologist Madeleine Swann, interpreted by the French Léa Seydoux, also seems to have things to hide.

In this opus, shot in particular in Italy and Jamaica, 007 "is a kind of wounded animal in struggle with its past as a secret agent", described the director Cary Joji Fukunaga last year in a video from the distributor Universal Pictures .

American actor Rami Malek, who plays the "bad guy" in the latest James Bond, February 9, 2020 in Beverly Hills, California Jean-Baptiste Lacroix AFP / Archives

According to the director, it is a "race" for James Bond, "not only to save the world but those he loves".

Actress and screenwriter Phoebe Waller-Bridge ("Fleabag") was hired to improve the portrayal of women in the film, a way to respond to criticism of the sexism of some of the franchise's work.

© 2021 AFP