The real mystery of Glass Onion: A Knives Out Story isn’t murder — its whether or not we’ll see a topless Daniel Craig. In a conversation at Vulture Festival on November 12, our critic Nicholas Quah asked Glass Onion director Rian Johnson who would win in a fish fight: Daniel Craig’s Benoit Blanc or Kenneth Branagh’s Hercule Poirot from Death on the Nile? Johnson basically said it’s a toss-up, but the question reminded him of a running gag in the upcoming mystery that has to do with the James Bond actor’s bod. “There’s an ongoing joke in Glass Onion,†he recounted. “It’s a pool party, and Benoit Blanc never wants to take off his shirt.†For context, the film takes place on a private Greek island, where rich people (and Benoit Blanc) have gathered poolside for a murder-mystery party where someone actually gets murdered.
“So, he’s in the pool in his shirt,†Johnson continued. “At some point I thought this was very funny, and that it would be nice because Daniel doesn’t have to worry about working out all the time. And, he’s like, ‘You know I just came off the last James Bond movie, I’m actually kind of buff right now. Are you sure you don’t want me to take my shirt off?’†Johnson didn’t reveal the answer to Craig’s reasonable question at Vulture Festival, leading us to wonder if the actor does, in fact, eventually take his shirt off, perhaps during a climactic scene revealing both the murderer and his abs. The fact that Johnson brought it up leads us to think this is a key element of the story — keep your eyes on Craig’s shirt when the movie drops November 23. It could be a clue…