Ralph Fiennes Recalls Being on the James Bond Film Set with ‘Warm’ and ‘Charming’ King Charles (Exclusive)

Ralph Fiennes is looking back on time spent with King Charles.

In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE for My Life in Pictures, the actor, 61, recalls the then-Prince of Wales, 76, paying a set visit to the James Bond film No Time to Die in 2021.

“The atmosphere changes when royalty visits a film set,” Fiennes says. “Even if they don’t button them up literally, there’s a bit of internal buttoning up that might go on.”

Adding that “royalty provokes the spectrum of responses,” including “people who say, ‘Oh, f—! The Prince of Wales is coming. What a pain,’ ” he continues, “To other people, [it’s like], ‘Did you see him? What’s he like?’ ”

According to Fiennes, King Charles was “warm” and “charming to meet” when he visited the set of the Bond film, in which he played the character “M.”

The Return star adds that his interaction with the British royal was “easy.”

King Charles later attended the September 2021 premiere of the film in London, alongside Queen Camilla, Prince William and Kate Middleton.

No Time to Die was the third film in which Fiennes played M, the head of the Secret Intelligence Service known as MI6.

The film marked the end of Daniel Craig’s tenure as James Bond, which stretched across five movies over 15 years — including 2006’s Casino Royale, 2008’s Quantum of Solace, 2012’s Skyfall and 2015’s Spectre.

Fiennes recently starred in Conclave and The Return, which debuted in October and December, respectively.

The star will next appear in the horror-thriller 28 Years Later, which also features Cillian Murphy and Aaron Taylor-Johnson, when it hits theaters on June 20, 2025.