For a long time, there was not a single word from the production of the next James Bond film; however, after months of silence, Bond 24 was confirmed to be in production, and as soon as filming was announced, rumors began pouring out of the studio. Unconfirmed shooting locations, possible actresses as Bond girls and unreleased casting calls were all leaked to the public. One of the most interesting of these leaks was a call for a new "iconic henchman" as part of Bond 24. The listing called back to iconic franchise henchman, though no one knew exactly what it meant.

Now it seems that fans have a much better idea of what to expect. According to rumors, Dave Bautista is set to join Bond 24 as the henchman known as 'Hinx.'

If the name Dave Bautista doesn't ring a bell, then Drax the Destroyer should. Bautista played the space-faring assassin in Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy earlier this summer, a role that many considered to be one of the stand-out characters from the film. While it's true that Bautista starred in other films prior, it was his time in WWE and Guardians of the Galaxy that catapulted the actor to where he is now. Latino Review has reported that Bautista is now signed for the lead henchman role in Bond 24.

Between his performance in Guardians and what the casting call was looking for, his role in Bond 24 makes a whole lot of sense. The original ad called for an physically imposing villain around 6' 2" that was "possibly from a sports background," which sounds like it was tailor-made for the former WWE performer. The listing also calls for stunt driving and stage combat training: it seems that Hinx will have a far more pronounced role than the legion of generic henchman in 2012's Skyfall.

Despite early production troubles, it seems that Bond 24 is back on track. The film is set to start filming this December, with locations in Austria, Rome and possibly Morocco. Léa Seydoux was just confirmed as the first Bond girl of the film, and Daniel Craig will reprise his role as the titular spy. Now, it seems that Dave Bautista will join the cast.

Despite not having a proper title, Bond 24 already has a release date: Nov. 6, 2015.

Photo: Gage Skidmore (cropped)