SPECTRE: James Bond Gets Re-Acquainted with an Old Enemy

MGM's Spectre, the twenty-fourth in Eon Productions' James Bond film series franchise, is set for release to theaters on November 6. Directed by Sam Mendes from a screenplay written by John Logan, Neal Purvis and Robert Wade based on the original works of Sir Ian Fleming, the movie will re-introduce viewers to the global terrorist organization first seen on the screen in 1962's Dr. No - S.P.E.C.T.R.E. (or Special Executive for Counter-intelligence, Terrorism, Revenge and Extortion).

Daniel Craig stars as Agent 007 for the fourth time - following 2006's Casino Royale , 2008's Quantum of Solace and 2012's Skyfall. Ralph Fiennes, Rory Kinnear, Naomie Harris, Ben Whishaw and Jesper Christensen will also be reprising their Skyfall roles as the new M, Bill Tanner, agent Eve Moneypenney, quartermaster/gadget man Q, and Quantum's head Mr. White, respectively. The new additions to the cast include Monica Bellucci as Lucia Sciarra, Lea Seydoux as Madeleine Swann, David Bautista as Mr. Hinx, Christoph Waltz as Franz Oberhauser, and Andrew Scott as Denbigh. Bond's new car for the film will be a silver Aston Martin DB10.

The logo of the Spectre organization, an octopus, is implied in the crack pattern of the glass with a bullet hole shown in movie's first official teaser poster. According to the studio's synopsis, a cryptic message from Bond's past sends him on a trail to uncover a sinister organization. While M battles political forces to keep the secret service alive, Bond peels back the layers of deceit to reveal the terrible truth behind SPECTRE.

Regarding what SPECTRE means, director Mendes teased, "Those of you who have some knowledge of the Bond franchise and the legend of Bond will probably have some idea of what that refers to, but I couldn't possibly comment." In Ian Fleming's mythology, the organization founded and led by the evil genius and super-villain Ernst Stavro Blofield was a politically-neutral, purely profit-motivated commercial enterprise run by a corporate board.