Monica Bellucci will be the next Bond girl, confirmed director Sam Mendes this morning at a photo call at Pinewood Studios in England.
The director also revealed that the 24th installment of the franchise, which will once again feature Daniel Craig as 007, has been named Spectre.
Mendes made the announcement Thursday morning from the 007 stage at Pinewood Studios where the film will shoot. Other locations include London, Rome, Mexico City, Tangier, Erfoud and the Austrian Alps.
According to Deadline, the Bond creators have been eyeing the 50-year-old Italian beauty, who plays Lucia Sciarra, to star in a Bond film for a very long time.
According to the studio, the plot will focus on something from Bond’s past.
“A cryptic message from Bond’s past sends him on a trail to uncover a sinister organization. While M battles political forces to keep the secret service alive, Bond peels back the layers of deceit to reveal the terrible truth behind SPECTRE.”
The #Bond24 cast has been announced! Meet the #Spectre stars: http://t.co/Rk8xDaO4rM pic.twitter.com/Xb6qTF9hFR
— EntertainmentTonight (@etnow) December 4, 2014
Pictures of the day: #JamesBond photocall Lea Seydoux, #DanielCraig and Monica Bellucci (EPA) http://t.co/RKosyQHhyE pic.twitter.com/eB2tnzu7vw
— Telegraph Pictures (@TelegraphPics) December 4, 2014
Other confirmed cast members for the latest Bond installment include Christoph Waltz, Andrew Scott, Dave Bautista and Léa Seydoux. Others to reprise their roles are Rory Kenner as Tanner, Ben Whishaw as Q, Naomie Harris as Miss Moneypenny and Ralph Fiennes as the new M.
#JamesBond returns with #SPECTRE featuring #bondgirls Monica Bellucci and Lea Seydoux. http://t.co/OiwqRyoGJn pic.twitter.com/DY2le9Tcmk
— Yahoo Singapore (@YahooSG) December 4, 2014
Oscar-winner Waltz will play Oberhauser, while Blue Is The Warmest Color‘s Seydoux is Madeleine Swann. Guardians Of The Galaxy‘s Bautista will play Mr Hinx and Sherlock‘s Scott is Denbigh.
Bond’s Aston Martin DB10 was reportedly designed especially for Spectre.
Cinematographer Hoyte Van Hoytema, of Interstellar, will shoot the film with Mendes. Lee Smith, also of Interstellar, will edit the film.