Bond 24 could be about to resurrect one of the franchise’s most iconic villains, with The Daily Mail reporting that the next film will reintroduce Ernst Stavros Blofeld as antagonist in chief.
According to the report, Christoph Waltz will be playing Bond’s most famous nemesis, with his casting apparently set to be announced at a press conference in December.
The Mail claims that his character will be announced as new creation Franz Oberhauser, the son of a deceased ski instructor who had served as a father figure to Bond.
However, this will apparently be a double bluff, with Waltz actually playing a “less campy” version of Blofeld, ably assisted by Dave Bautista’s henchman in chief.
The character's potential return would now be possible after the settlement of the long-running legal wrangle between Eon Productions and the estate of the late Kevin McClory, who had been at loggerheads over the ownership of rights to the character.
Directed by Sam Mendes and co-starring Daniel Craig, Ralph Fiennes and Ben Whishaw, Bond 24 will open in the UK on 23 October 2015, and the US on 6 November 2015.
