Javier Bardem to be in Bond 23?

Things are quckly moving on Bond 23: Last time, MGM announced that the next entry in the 007 franchise would be going foreword after all, and will plan to release it in November of 2012. Today, we learn that we may have Bond's new villain: Oscar-winner Javier Bardem.

Following word over the weekend that Javier Bardem has been offered a major role in the upcoming (still untitled) 23rd James Bond film, the LA Times spoke with the actor and confirmed that the part in question is, indeed, the film's villain.

"I’d be playing Bond's nemesis, yes," Bardem explains, "but it's not that obvious. Everything is more nuanced. It's very intriguing... They're changing the whole thing, the whole dynamic."

Bardem acknowledges his interest, saying that he's a big fan of the franchise, but will not make a decision until he has the opportunity to read the full script. That said, meetings so far with director Sam Mendes certainly seem to have left him intrigued.

Bardem would make a great Bond villain. Why? He's played one in the Coen Bros. No Country For Old Men, and to great effect.