'James Bond' casts villain and Bond girl

LOS ANGELES, Feb. 16 (UPI) -- Actress Eva Green was announced late Thursday as James Bond's love interest in "Casino Royale" and Danish actor Mads Mikkelsen was cast as 007's villain.

Green, who Columbia Pictures said will play Vesper Lynd opposite Daniel Craig's James Bond, made her screen debut in Bernardo Bertolucci's "The Dreamers," Daily Variety reported. She also starred in Jean-Paul Salome's "Arsene Lupin" and Ridley Scott's "Kingdom of Heaven."

Columbia Pictures President Amy Pascal said Green's character will be key to the "Casino Royale" plot.

"When you think about the great James Bond adventures, of course you think about action and espionage, but you need to have palpable sexual tension in the movie, and in casting Vesper, we really needed to up the ante, because this character is very much an equal to Bond and central to our story," she said.

Mikkelsen is best known for his role as Tristan in "King Arthur."

Filming is scheduled to move this week from the Czech Republic to the Bahamas.