This poster is also a means up drumming up anticipation for the impending teaser trailer, which is set to premiere online Monday, May 21st at 8:30am BST.  That would be 12:30 am PST for any Stateside west coasters. 

The trailer might be essentially a moving version of this poster, an announcement that after a four-year hiatus, Bond is indeed returning.  Or maybe it'll feature actual footage from the film and give some idea of the story and the mysterious villain played by Javier Bardem.  Probably not, though.  Either way, tune in Monday to see it.

The teaser poster made its debut today at Bond's official online lovenasium, 007.com.

After the stripped-down, meaner Bond won over fans with 2006's Casino Royale, the follow-up, Quantum of Solace, was seen as a bit of a fumble.  That movie, which was at least partially a casualty of the Writers Strike in 2007 and 2008, was a surprisingly direct sequel to its predecessor, but Skyfall is a standalone adventure in the standard Bond mold.

Oscar-winner Sam Mendes takes on his first large-scale action movie, but his skill with character-based drama suggests that this installment could be something special.  Neal Purvis and Robert Wade, a duo whose Bond history goes back to The World Is Not Enough, contributed to the script, but Gladiator and Rango writer worked extensively with Mendes on the screenplay as well.

Craig and Judi Dench are the only castmembers continuing their franchise roles, with Dench taking her seventh turn as M.  Javier Bardem leads the newcomers, a list that also boasts Ralph Fiennes, Naomie Harris, Berenice Marlohe, Helen McCrory, Ola Rapace, Ben Whishaw, and Albert Finney.

Skyfall arrives in American theaters on November 9th.