Michael Fassbender missed out on having a chance to play 007 after he mistakenly endorsed Daniel Craig while auditioning for the role himself. 

While appearing on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Michael recalled meeting with James Bond producer Barbara Broccoli and auditioning for the iconic character.

However, things didn’t quite go according to plan after Michael inadvertently brought up Daniel’s name during their conversation. 

“I don’t know why I was promoting him, I should have been promoting myself,” he said with a laugh during the episode, which debuted last week.

Michael told host Josh Horowitz that he never really considered himself to be “in the mix” for the part to begin with, adding that he was “terrible at auditions” back then. 

Daniel famously went on to star as the iconic British Secret Service agent in five Bond films between 2006 and 2021. 

“Obviously, Daniel did a fantastic job and went on to, I think, be the most successful Bond in history,” the X-Men actor explained. “That was it, really. There was never a conversation after that.”

After the host suggested that he could still make a “kick ass Bond,” Michael declared that the ship had sailed on his opportunity to play the titular character. 

“I think it’s over,” he said. “It’s over.”

Though he never suited up as Bond, Michael shared his opinion on who could take up Daniel’s mantle, recommending his Black Bag co-star Regé-Jean Page as a “frontrunner” for the role as well as Aaron Taylor-Johnson. 

Watch Michael Fassbender’s appearance on the Happy Sad Confused podcast below: