Los Angeles, Sep 17 (IANS/EFE) Shooting of the next James Bond film, the 24th instalment of the popular spy series, will begin Dec 6 at Pinewood Studios near London, Variety reported.

Sam Mendes is back to direct the new film following his work on the hugely successful "Skyfall" (2012).

Daniel Craig will once again play Agent 007 in the new instalment, starring in his fourth Bond flick after his turns in "Casino Royale" (2006), "Quantum of Solace" (2008) and "Skyfall".

Rounding out the main cast are Ralph Fiennes as "M", Naomie Harris as "Eve Moneypenny", and Ben Whishaw as "Q".

The rest of the cast has not been confirmed, Variety said.

The screenplay is by John Logan, Neal Purvis and Robert Wade, the team behind "Skyfall".

MGM, Sony and producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli said last summer that the movie would open Oct 23, 2015, in Britain and Nov 6, 2015, in the US.

"Skyfall", which featured Spanish actor Javier Bardem as the villain, was the most successful film in the Bond series, grossing more than $1 billion worldwide.