It was incredibly disappointing to hear that cinematographer Roger Deakins would not be returning for Bond 24 after doing such a stunning job on Skyfall. However, as production on the next Bond installment is poised to get underway in December, director Sam Mendes has now settled on Deakins’ replacement, and it’s an excellent choice. In Contention reports that Hoyte van Hoytema will be the cinematographer on Bond 24, marking yet another fantastic notch in what’s becoming a heck of a run in the director of photography’s career. The Dutch-Swedish cinematographer first came to prominence for shooting the original Let the Right One In, going on to do equally arresting work on films like Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy and last year’s Her. Most recently, though, he nabbed his most high profile film to date as Christopher Nolan hand-picked him to replace his longtime collaborator Wally Pfister on the upcoming Interstellar.

And not only is Hoytema a brilliant choice to shoot Bond 24, but the movie might actually be shooting on film this time around. More after the jump.

Kris Tapley over at In Contention broke the news that Hoyte van Hoytema will be the cinematographer on Bond 24, which is fitting given that Tapley was the one who revealed that Deakins wouldn’t be returning in the first place. It was an unfortunate departure on Deakins’ part, especially since Skyfall director Sam Mendes was coming back. Understandably, though, Deakins had a scheduling conflict with his longtime collaborators the Coen brothers, as he’ll be shooting their next film Hail, Caesar! during Bond 24‘s production after Skyfall rendered him unable to shoot Inside Llewyn Davis.

Hoytema is certainly one of the most promising up-and-coming cinematographers working today, though after this recent string of films I think we can hardly refer to him as “up-and-coming” anymore. Tapley adds that, while unconfirmed, he’s hearing that Bond 24 will be shot on film after going digital (to astounding results, mind you) on Skyfall. Hoytema obviously shot Interstellar on film and did wonderful work on Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy in the format as well, but he shot Her digitally with the Arri Alexa so he’s really proven that he can capture amazing images either way.

This is very exciting news indeed, especially to film nerds like myself. I thought Hoytema’s work on Her was jaw-dropping, and I’ve been looking forward to seeing what he does with the IMAX format on Interstellar. What about you, fellow cinephiles? Are you pleased with this choice as Deakins’ replacement? Who are some of your favorite cinematographers working today? Show some love to these under-recognized yet vitally important crafstmen and women in the comments below.