Penelope Cruz is the new Bond girl, rumor has it.
According to a report in E! Online, rumors are afloat that the 39-year-old actress, who won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in 2008 for her performance in "Vicky Cristina Barcelona," will star in the next James Bond flick, currently referred to as Bond 24.
Speculations surfaced following the reported leak of a document by Sony Pictures, which listed Cruz as the female lead. The news has neither been confirmed nor rejected by Sony Pictures. When the website contacted Sony Pictures for comment, it simply said: "Studio doesn't comment on rumors."
This is not the first time that rumors have arisen regarding Cruz doing a Bond film. Last summer, word on the street was Cruz was negotiating to act in the follow-up of "Skyfall," which featured the actress' husband Javier Bardem as villain Raoul Silva.
A report in The Sun says execs at Sony Pictures have been keen to cast the "Pirates of the Caribbean" actress in a Bond movie since Daniel Craig became the MI5 secret agent in 2006. However, a source told the tabloid that "schedules and her pregnancies meant it never materialized," adding, "At this stage no one at Sony will confirm it."
While Sam Mendes, who directed "Skyfall," will be at the helm of affairs in Bond 24, Oscar-nominated screenwriter John Logan has done the script for the upcoming movie.
Earning more than $1 billion from box office collections across the globe, "Skyfall" has been the biggest blockbuster of the James Bond franchise so far. Many have credited the success of the movie to Mendes, who induced a rich depth as well as complexity to Bond's personality.
The upcoming Bond flick is scheduled for release in theaters across the U.K. on Oct. 23, 2015 and in the U.S. theaters on Nov. 6, 2015.
