James Bond returns to classic roots with Spectre

German Oscar winner Christoph Waltz and Italian actress Monica Bellucci will star alongside Britain's Daniel Craig in the next James Bond film Spectre, in a new outing promising a strong dose of 007 nostalgia.

The movie - titled after a global criminal organization featuring in the early Bond films - will be shot in Mexico City, Rome and Tangiers, and will also see Britain's famous spy returning to the ski slopes, in Austria, director Sam Mendes said on Dec 4 at Pinewood Studios.

Speaking on a stage built specifically for the Bond films in the 1970s, Mendes gives nothing away about the plot as he unveils the casting of what will be the 24th film in the hugely successful series based on author Ian Fleming's fictional Secret Service agent.