Mads Mikkelsen loved teasing a fellow Danish actor about outliving his Bond character.

Mads played Le Chiffre, the villain who had blood weeping from his eye, in the 2006 movie Casino Royale. The Danish star was thrilled to land the role of Le Chiffre, a banker to global terrorist organisations and a mathematical genius.

Mads was especially pleased that his character lasted longer than Ulrich Thomsen’s Davidov in the 1999 Bond film The World is Not Enough.

“Well, Ulrich Thomsen definitely got a text,” he told British newspaper The Telegraph when asked if he had made any of his contemporaries jealous after winning the role. “Ulrich’s character in The World is Not Enough dies, on, like, page 49, and I was like, guess what, I’m on page 89, and I’m still alive!”

Mads is set to play Hannibal Lecter in a new US TV show and has been linked to a role in Thor 2. He also recently won the best actor award at the Cannes Film Festival for his performance in The Hunt.

Despite his success, Mads remains modest about his recent prestigious movie prize.

“It’s the film’s award,” he explained. “Well, I’ll take it! But you won’t be noticed in a film that’s average.”