Daniel Craig on the red carpet for 'No Time To Die'

Wet weather failed to dampen spirits as Daniel Craig, dressed in an eye-catching pink velvet dinner jacket, and co-stars including Lashana Lynch and Lea Seydoux reunited for the hotly anticipated movie, which cinema operators hope will bring audience numbers back to pre-pandemic levels.

"No Time To Die," the 25th Bond movie, has been delayed three times since its original April 2020 slot as movie theaters around the world were forced to shut their doors as well as impose audience number restrictions due to the pandemic.

The Universal Pictures and MGM film marks Craig's fifth and final outing as the suave British secret agent known for his love of fast cars and cool gadgets, wrapping up a 15-year tenure that began with 2006's "Casino Royale."

"It's such a great relief. It was so important to me to come and celebrate with all the other cast and crew and to get it into the cinemas and we're here," Craig told Reuters, "a year ago I didn't think that was going to happen."

Directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga and costing an estimated $200 million to produce, "No Time To Die" sees Bond come out of retirement from an idyllic life in Jamaica to help track down a new villain, played by Oscar winner Rami Malek, armed with lethal technology.