James Bond returns to his roots to face 'Spectre'

The film, to hit screens worldwide November 6 next year, is named after the sinister SPECTRE organisation run by evil cat-stroking genius Ernst Stavro Blofeld which featured in early Bond films starring Sean Connery and Roger Moore.

During a presentation at Pinewood Studios outside London, director Sam Mendes revealed that, as well as Daniel Craig in his fourth adventure as 007, it would star double Oscar winner Christoph Waltz plus Monica Bellucci and Lea Seydoux.

"A cryptic message from Bond's past sends him on a trail to uncover a sinister organisation," a brief plot summary released at the event revealed.

"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."

That, plus the unveiling of the new Bond car, an Aston Martin DB10, suggests that "Spectre", the franchise's 24th film, will stick to the winning Bond formula of stunts, seduction and exotic locations.

Shooting will start on Monday and is due to take around seven months.

Bellucci, an Italian actress seen in the "Matrix" trilogy, said Bond represented "the ideal man -- the man who's a protector and generous, but at the same time mysterious, dangerous, sexy".

Seydoux, a French actress acclaimed for her role in lesbian coming-of-age drama "Blue is the Warmest Colour", suggested her character could embody an evolution in the portrayal of Bond girls.

"She needs to be sexy, she's strong, she's tough -- but I think that now she's more sensitive. She's more vulnerable," she told AFP.

It was the possibility that Waltz, known for playing villains in movies like "Inglourious Basterds", could play Blofeld that got diehard Bond fans most excited.

The Austrian actor brushed away questions about the precise nature of his role when questioned by journalists.

"Everybody's seen the Bond movies from childhood on. It's legend. It's practically modern mythology. To participate in that, come on, you don't have to think, you just do it," he said.

He is confirmed to play a character called Oberhausen who, in Ian Fleming's original James Bond books, taught Bond to ski and climb while he was a schoolboy.

But the prospect of SPECTRE without Blofeld is unthinkable for many Bond fans and Waltz would be a strong contender to take on the role.

"For the next year or so, Waltz and everyone involved with SPECTRE will have to field endless 'You're Blofeld really, aren't you?' questions," British movie magazine Empire wrote in its report on the launch.

Roger Moore fuelled the intrigue by writing on his Twitter account: "So Blofeld is back!"

Blofeld has not featured in an official Bond film since 1981's "For Your Eyes Only" due to a legal rights dispute which was only resolved last year.

The SPECTRE acronym stands for "Special Executive for Counter-Intelligence, Terrorism, Revenge and Extortion" and the conspiracy's symbol is an octopus.

The movie will be shot at Pinewood and on location in London, Mexico City, Rome, Tangiers and Morocco's oasis town of Erfoud, plus in several mountain locations in Austria.

Actors returning for the latest movie include Ralph Fiennes, promoted to spy chief M, and Ben Whishaw, who played the Secret Service's technological whiz-kid, both introduced in the last film "Skyfall".

Andrew Scott, best known as the villain Moriarty in the BBC's "Sherlock" television series, is also in, along with Filipino-American wrestler and actor Dave Bautista.

Craig, who has signed on for a total five Bond films, told the BBC he had only "read the script this morning" for "Spectre".

The debonaire government assassin employed by MI6 has previously been played by Connery, George Lazenby, Moore, Timothy Dalton and Pierce Brosnan.

Bond has been one of the highest-earning film series ever. "Skyfall" took over $1.1 billion (1.3 billion euros, $1.7 billion) worldwide.

While Thursday's event revealed the cast, it did not name who will perform the final key part of any Bond film -- its theme song.