'No Time To Die': Rami Malek's Safin is 'smarter and stronger than Spectre'

James Bond looks set to face his toughest villain yet in the forthcoming No Time To Die.

In a new promotional video released for the film (watch it below), director Cary Joji Fukunaga teased that the Bond’s adversary in the film – presumably Rami Malek’s Safin – is “more dangerous than anyone he has ever encountered, and whoever they are is smarter and and stronger than Spectre.”

Spectre is the name of the shadowy organisation headed up Christoph Waltz’s Blofeld, that has clashed with 007 countless times over 25 movies.

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Fukunaga explains that the upcoming James Bond film will be a culmination of all the spy has become over the years.

The movie will be the final outing for Daniel Craig in the lead role and "everything that was left unsaid will finally be said", the filmmaker promised.

It will find Bond after he has left active service and is enjoying a tranquil life in Jamaica when his old friend Felix Leiter, played by Jeffrey Wright, from the CIA turns up asking for help.

A mission to rescue a kidnapped scientist turns out to be far more treacherous than expected, leading to a mysterious villain armed with dangerous new technology.

In a new featurette for the movie, co-written by Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Fukunaga says: "For me as a writer and a director, it was essential to rediscover Bond. Where is he? After five years of retirement, who has he become?

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"He is sort of a wounded animal, struggling with his role as a 00. The world has changed, the rules of engagement aren't what they used to be, the rules of espionage are darker in this era of asymmetric warfare.

"The people close to Bond, those he considers to be family, are at great risk and now there is someone new out there, more dangerous than anyone he has ever encountered, and whoever they are is smarter and and stronger than Spectre.

"From the moment he's called to action to the end of the film is a race, not only to save the world but their lives.

"No Time To Die is a culmination of all that Bond has become, it's all that he's seen, all the trauma, the loss.

"What is that mission, that will be his most challenging and his most difficult? That was our target. We aim to do something extraordinary with this one.

"Every Bond film has that thing, the danger but also the emotional punch. Everything that was left unsaid will finally be said. This will be the final chapter for Daniel Craig."

Read more: Why Craig didn’t quit after Spectre

The clip shows behind-the-scenes footage from the making of the film, including a look at Rami Malek as villainous Safin, Lea Seydoux returning as Madeleine Swann, Lashana Lynch as the new double-O agent Nomi and Ana De Armas as Paloma.

It ends with a shot of shell casings pouring out of the side of the Aston Martin DB5, as it take heavy fire before disappearing into a cloud of smoke.

No Time To Die is released in UK cinemas on 2 April.