Freida Pinto is to become the next Bond girl.

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The 'Slumdog Millionaire' actress has signed a multi-million pound deal to play the suave spy's love interest in the 23rd James Bond movie - which is set in Afghanistan - after being approached by director Sam Mendes.

A source said: "Sam has been talking about Bond for months now and is so excited about it. The project has been in the pipeline for months and Freida was always the dream Bond girl, but initially she was nervous about accepting it. This is going to be the most ambitious 007 yet. Sam plans to reinvent the genre.

"Peter Morgan, who wrote 'The Queen', has penned the first draft of the script and it promises to be visually stunning."

Freida is currently dating her 'Slumdog Millionaire' co-star Dev Patel and he is thrilled his girlfriend was won such a high-profile role.

The source added to the Daily Mirror newspaper: "It will be a typically glamorous and raunchy role and Dev has been joking to friends he is cool with seeing Freida rolling around with 007."

Freida will star alongside Daniel Craig, who will be reprising his role as Bond once more, while US actress Olivia Wilde has been approached to play a double-crossing UN worker based in Afghanistan.

(C) BANG Media International

Source says Pinto may be next Bond girl

Freida Pinto from "Slumdog Millionaire" arrives at the 81st Academy Awards in Hollywood on February 22, 2009. (UPI Photo/ Roger L. Wollenberg)

LOS ANGELES, March 15 (UPI) -- Mumbai-born actress Freida Pinto, star of "Slumdog Millionaire," could soon be the next female star of a James Bond movie, a source says.

An unidentified source said Pinto has been asked by Barbara Broccoli, who produces the James Bond spy films, about serving as the next Bond girl, People.com reported Sunday.

The source said the 24-year-old beauty, who starred as Latika in "Slumdog," has been in the sights of Bond creators before the franchise's last installment, "Quantum of Solace."

"Freida came to the attention of the Bond team when they were casting 'Quantum of Solace,'" the source said, but "she was too young at the time to have a part as a love interest for a secret agent."

Pinto recently parlayed her "Slumdog" fame into an Indian Vogue magazine cover shoot and a deal with the Estee Lauder cosmetics group, People.com said.

Freida Pinto Teams Up With Woody Allen

By Katey Rich:
Freida Pinto may have only had to stand around and look pretty in Slumdog Millionaire, but she's taking that questionable talent to the bank. She's now signed on for her post-Slumdog role, playing the ingenue in Woody Allen's untitled new project, which shoots in London this spring.

She's signing on along with Naomi Watts, according to Variety, and they'll both be joining Anthony Hopkins and Josh Brolin in the film. As usual with Woody Allen, we have no idea what the movie is about yet. But you have to wonder if Scarlett Johansson is pissed having been replaced by Pinto, the next next big thing to get her start with Allen.