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Now Daniel Craig’s children know how the rest of us feel when contemplating his legacy.
Disappointed.
The James Bond actor, allegedly banking $25 million to resume the role yet again, has told Candis magazine in his native Great Britain that he doesn’t plan to leave much of his fortune to his two children.
“My philosophy is to get rid of it or give it away before you go,” Craig told the magazine. He cited an adage that “if you die a rich person you’ve failed,” calling it “distasteful” to leave massive sums to your heirs.
If you are the child of one of the world’s highest paid actors, this is the financial equivalent of starting with Casino Royale, arguably the greatest Bond movie ever made, and then ending up with Skyfall and Spectre, which your correspondent considers the two worst.
Maybe his kids knew this all along. So maybe they didn’t have their high hopes dashed.
Craig is not alone among the wealthy in saying he doesn’t plan to leave his fortune to his kids. Billionaires Warren Buffett and Bill Gates have said much the same. On the other hand, everything is relative. Most people would considers themselves lucky even to leave, say, a few hundred thousand dollars each to their kids. What you leave after the first million or two is moot.
It’s been wisely argued that leaving your children enough money so they can do anything is much better for them than leaving them enough money so they can do nothing.
