The man who was Q, John Cleese, reckons that money has ruined the James Bond series…

John Cleese has form in the James Bond movies. He ascended to the role of Q in Die Another Day, and was originally expected to return to the part. However, Pierce Brosnan departed the world of Bond, the reboot came in, Daniel Craig got the role, and things went back to the start for Bond. Only now has Ben Whishaw been introduced as the new Q.

In a new interview to promote his autobiography, Cleese was asked what he thought of Whishaw’s take on Q. But as it turns out, he’s not seen it. Cleese said that he didn’t watch Skyfall “because I have criticisms of the new Bond movies.”

He continued, telling Shortlist that “two things went wrong: the plots became so impossibly obscure that even professional writers couldn’t figure out what they were about; and the action scenes, which are supposed to make the adrenaline run, go on far too long.”

Cleese argues that “they discovered these movies were popular in places such as the Philippines and South Korea, and so they dropped the humour because no one there is going to understand jokes about the English class system…One of the great things I’ve learnt in the last few years is just how much money spoils everything”, he noted.

The last James Bond movie, Skyfall, remains the most successful 007 adventure of all time, and the same team who made it – led by star Daniel Craig and director Sam Mendes – are soon to start shooting James Bond 24, for release in October next year.