Despite it being one of the character's most iconic traits, Daniel Craig reveals he forgot his hilarious Benoit Blanc accent before filming Knives Out 2. Once again written and directed by Rian Johnson, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery will see Edward Norton's tech billionaire Miles Bron head to the Mediterranean for a gorgeous getaway with some of his closest friends. However, when one of his guests turns up dead, Craig's Benoit Blanc is brought in to help get to the bottom of his latest twisty murder mystery.
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Alongside Craig and Norton, the ensemble cast for Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery includes Janelle Monáe, Kathryn Hahn, Leslie Odom Jr., Jessica Henwick, Madelyn Cline, Kate Hudson, Dave Bautista and Ethan Hawke. The film is also expected to see the return of Noah Segan, who has worked with Johnson on all of his films since his feature directorial debut Brick and shared photos from the set of the sequel. While audiences have eagerly awaited the return of Blanc and Johnson to the murder mystery fold, it appears it was nearly too long for the Knives Out 2 star.
While speaking with Empire to discuss the highly anticipated sequel, Daniel Craig opens up about the making of Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery. In reflecting on stepping back into his character's shoes, the actor revealed he forgot his hilarious Benoit Blanc accent and discussed his process to recapture the unique voice. See what Craig said below:
I went away to work with an accent coach for three or four months before we started shooting [Glass Onion]. I’d forgotten the accent and I didn’t want to do a pastiche. I wanted to make it as grounded and as anchored in reality as possible.
Craig's hilarious Benoit Blanc accent quickly became one of the more talked-about elements of the original Knives Out movie, with many audiences surprised at the thick southern accent the actor brought to the role. In addition to being a joke within the film itself, in which Chris Evans' Ransom makes multiple remarks at Blanc's expense, Craig himself would poke fun at his Knives Out accent with a Saturday Night Live sketch a few months after the film came out with Beck Bennett portraying his equally eccentric vocal coach. Despite being the subject of some mockery, Craig's turn as Blanc in Knives Out ultimately proved to be in the actor's favor as he earned a Golden Globe nomination, losing it to Taron Egerton for his performance as Elton John in Rocketman.
Though Craig may have forgotten his hilarious Benoit Blanc accent before filming Knives Out 2, his dedication to properly recapturing the voice should come as a promising sign for fans of the original movie, namely with his discussion of working with a vocal coach for multiple months to get it back. With the murder mystery sequel slated for a late 2022 release, it will be interesting to see if Craig's efforts will net him another Golden Globe nomination, or even bring home the statue for his performance. Only time will tell when Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery premieres on Netflix on December 23.