Though no official confirmation has arrived from Team EON yet – they tend to wait until just before filming kicks off for such things – Baz Bamigboye is reporting that Lea Seydoux has been cast in Bond 24 in a role described as a “femme fatale”.
Bamigboye (who has a very solid track record with such reports) says that she’s signed on to the cast, which already includes returning core elements Daniel Craig, Ralph Fiennes, Ben Whishaw and Naomie Harris, ready for a script read-through next month. With filming reportedly set to start in six weeks, expect more casting details to start arriving soon.
Very little else is known about the film so far, beyond the fact that Sam Mendes is back to direct (with Hoyte van Hoytema stepping in to replace Roger Deakins as cinematographer). Veteran 007 writers Neal Purvis and Robert Wade have reportedly been at work polishing the script from Skyfall’s John Logan. Sets are reportedly under construction in Austria, which offers a clue as to one location Bond will be headed, but beyond that, information is locked up in a vault in MI6. Bond 24, whatever it actually ends up being called, is set for release here on October 23 next year.
Seydoux, who was last seen in **The Grand Budapest Hotel **and Yves Saint Lauren****t, is part of the cast for quirky romantic drama The Lobster alongside Colin Farrell and Rachel Weisz.