Clive Owen backs "serious" new Bond

'Layer Cake' / Sony Pictures

New James Bond star Daniel Craig has been given a strong endorsement from Clive Owen - once seen as his rival for the coveted role.

In an interview with BBC News, Owen stated that Craig is a "proper actor" and will ultimately prove his critics wrong when Casino Royale is released later this year.

"He is not shallow or posing," he said. "They have cast a really serious actor and I think that when the film comes out everyone will see what a great choice he was."

Speaking before Friday's release of his latest film Children of Men, Owen added: "I think when Craig first took the part he got a pretty rough ride, which to a certain extent is inevitable because there are so many different people who have so many different ideas about something like that."