Los Angeles: Spanish actor Javier Bardem has told the ABC network he will play the villain in the latest instalment of the James Bond series.

The winner of a best-supporting actor Oscar for his role as a sociopathic killer in the Coen brothers’ 2007 film No Country for Old Men, Bardem said he was “very enthusiastic” about the chance to appear in the saga of the fictional British Secret Service agent.

“My parents took me to see the films and I saw all of them,” Bardem said, adding he expects the experience to be a lot of fun.

“They chose me to play this man (the villain),” Bardem said without revealing any more details about the still-untitled project, which will be directed by Sam Mendes and feature Daniel Craig as 007 for the third time.

Filming of the 23rd installment in the Bond saga is expected to begin in November 2012.

Bardem had said earlier this month that he was in talks to voice the villain in the sequel to the CGI hit Despicable Me, which would mark the Spanish actor’s first-ever turn in an animated feature. (IANS)