Movie icon and super spy James Bond seemed to be back at the top of the box office just a few years ago, but since then it's been about as quiet as a shot from a silenced Walther PPK. Daniel Craig took over the role in 2006. Casino Royale and passed the baton from 2021 No time to die in one of the most heartbreaking endings in Bond cinematic history (you cried, just admit it).
The only thing sadder is the reason we haven't seen a new Bond film since.
Wall Street Journal reports that Amazon and Barbara Broccoli, the producer who inherited the franchise from her father and film producer Albert “Cubby” Broccoli when he died in 1996, are at the center of a terrible fight that has halted production on the next Bond film. Apparently, Barbara doesn't trust Amazon with her family's famous movie franchise.
How bad is it? Well, here's a quote from Barbara to some of her friends explaining how she feels about the people who run the Amazon media empire: “These people are fucking idiots.” Damn, this is awkward with a capital A.
According to the company, the impasse began back in 2021, when Amazon bought MGM for $8.5 billion and thus acquired the rights to distribute Bond films. Diversity. The deal seemed like a big step for Amazon to make its way into Hollywood using one of the most storied and enduring film franchises.
Unfortunately for Amazon, the true power over the James Bond films lies with Broccoli. She's providing ideas for Bond adventures on the big screen and when they go into production, and Broccoli isn't interested in collaborating with Amazon anytime soon. WSJ spoke to 20 people familiar with the feud who said Broccoli believes Amazon is the wrong place for a Bond film because its core business is retail and e-commerce.
When Amazon acquired MGM, acquiring the rights to the Bond franchise was a key part of the deal's value. Broccoli and co-producer Michael Wilson had some doubts, but were assured that they would still retain creative control. The COVID lockdown had already made it difficult to begin production on the next Bond film. However, relations between the two parties appeared to be on the decline when Amazon also insisted that their next Bond film No time to die would have received theatrical release.
But once the deal was closed, Amazon executives began thinking about ways to expand the Bond film franchise into other media, such as a Moneypenny spinoff series for Prime Video or a standalone spy film or TV show set in the Bond universe. Broccoli refused to allow any of these projects to proceed. She also took umbrage with Amazon Entertainment chief executive Jennifer Salk's use of the word “content” to describe new James Bond projects and labeling any ideas Amazon had for Bond as “TBD” in the notes. To date, the only Bond property that Amazon can agree to Broccoli on is a reality show. 007: Road to a Million it's entering its second season.
Broccoli and her family have been part of the Bond film franchise for almost as long as she has been alive, so she is fiercely protective of the brand and her father's cinematic legacy. She has also begun training Wilson's son Gregg to create the latest installments and possibly prepare him to one day take over the franchise. Even this has led to controversy over who should play Bond in the next film. That's assuming we get it, and it doesn't look like that will happen anytime soon.
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