Pierce Brosnan has insisted he's holding onto "no regret" over the way he left the Bond franchise.

Brosnan starred as 007 in four movies between 1995 and 2002 – GoldenEye, Tomorrow Never Dies, The World Is Not Enough, and Die Another Day – but was informed by producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael Wilson on the phone in 2004 that his services were no longer required.

Brosnan later recalled in the 2015 book Some Kind of Hero: The Remarkable Story of the James Bond Films: "[Barbara] was crying, Michael was stoic and he said, 'You were a great James Bond. Thank you very much' and I said, 'Thank you very much. Goodbye.' "That was it. I was utterly shocked and just kicked to the curb with the way it went down."

However, in a new interview with The Guardian, Brosnan showed no sign of holding a grudge.

“There’s no regret,” he said. “I do not let regret come into my world. It just leads to more misery and more regrets. Bond is the gift that keeps giving and has allowed me to have a wonderful career. Once you’re branded as a Bond, it’s with you forever, so you better make peace with it and you’d better understand that when you walk through those doors and pick up the mantle of playing James Bond.”

Brosnan was succeeded in the role by Daniel Craig, who has now overtaken the late Sir Roger Moore to become the longest-serving Bond ever – with nearly 15 years in the role.

Craig's fifth and he's said final outing as 007, No Time to Die, is due to open November 12 in the U.K. and November 20 in the U.S. after coronavirus made its original April release date unfeasible.

Killing Eve executive producer Phoebe Waller-Bridge, who co-wrote the script, has recently discussed her “spicy additions” to the franchise, which we absolutely cannot wait to see.

Does Pierce Brosnan rank among your favorite James Bonds?