Penelope Cruz Named 'Bond Girl' for Upcoming JAMES BOND Film

The UK's GUARDIAN reports Penélope Cruz has signed on to be the next 'Bond' girl in Sam Mendes' follow up to SKYFALL. The actress, whose husband Javier Bardem appeared as the villain in the recent James Bond entry, will begin filming her role next summer.

The casting reveals an attempt to "age up" the popular spy series, with Bond lead Daniel Craig approaching age 46 and Cruz's 40 years making her the oldest Bond girl in franchise history.

A source reportedly told Yahoo: "The producers have tried to get Penélope before, but she has never been available because of other commitments. The discussions have been going on for some time and they are working out the contract details now."

Cruz rose to stardom in the 1990s and 2000s with the films Open Your Eyes (1997), The Hi-Lo Country (1999), The Girl of Your Dreams (2000) and Woman on Top (2000). She achieved high recognition for her lead roles in the 2001 films Vanilla Sky and Blow.

She has since built a successful career, appearing in films from a range of genres, including The Comedy Waking Up in Reno (2002), the thriller Gothika (2003), the Christmas movie Noel (2004), and the action adventure Sahara (2005). She has received critical acclaim for her roles inVolver (2006) and Nine (2009) receiving Golden Globe and Academy Award nominations for each. She won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in 2008 for Vicky Cristina Barcelona. She was the first Spanish actress in history to receive an Academy Award and the first Spanish actress to receive a star at the Hollywood Walk of Fame.