James Bond (the film series, not the spy) may be in great danger

Movie icon and super-spy James Bond seemed to be on another rise to the top of the box office just a few years ago, but things have been almost as quiet as a shot of a Walther PPK with a silencer since then. Daniel Craig took over the role in 2006 with Casino Royale And he passed the baton with 2021 No time to die In one of the most painful endings in Bond cinematic history (I cried, just admit it).

The only thing sadder is why we haven’t seen a new Bond movie since.

The Wall Street Journal Amazon and Barbara Broccoli, the producer who inherited the franchise from her father and film producer Albert “Cuby” Broccoli when he died in 1996, are reportedly in the midst of an ugly battle that has halted production on the next Bond film. Barbara clearly doesn’t trust Amazon with her family’s popular 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 running Amazon’s media empire: “These people are stupid.” Man, that’s awkward when you use a big “awk.”

The stalemate began in 2021 when Amazon bought MGM for $8.5 billion, thus gaining the rights to distribute the Bond films, according to diverse. The deal seemed like a big step for Amazon to make its way into Hollywood with one of its most popular and solid film franchises.

Unfortunately for Amazon, the real power over the James Bond films lies with Broccoli. She’s providing ideas for Bond’s adventures on the big screen and when they go into production, and Broccoli isn’t keen on working with Amazon anytime soon. Wall Street Journal I spoke to 20 people familiar with the dispute who said Broccoli feels Amazon is not the right place for a Bond film because its core business is retail and e-commerce.

When Amazon bought MGM, acquiring the rights to the Bond franchise was a key part of the value of the deal. Broccoli and co-producer Michael Wilson had some reservations but were assured they would still retain creative control. Coronavirus lockdowns were already making it difficult to move on to production on the next Bond film as well. However, it looks like things are starting to smooth over between the two parties when Amazon also insisted that it be the next Bond film No time to die You will get Theatrical release.

But once the deal was completed, Amazon executives began thinking about ways to expand the Bond film franchise into other media such as a Moneypenny spin-off series for Prime Video or a spin-off spy film or TV show set in the Bond universe. Broccoli refused to allow any of these projects to move forward. She also expressed dissatisfaction with Jennifer Salke, Amazon’s entertainment executive, using the word “content” to describe new James Bond projects and any ideas Amazon had for Bond were labeled “TBD” in the memos. So far, the only bond property Amazon can get Broccoli to sign is a reality series 007: The Road to a Million Which is entering its second season.

Broccoli and her family have been part of the Bond franchise for almost her entire life, so she’s fiercely protective of her father’s cinematic brand and legacy. She has also begun training Wilson’s son Greg to produce modern installments and perhaps prepare him to take over the franchise one day. And even this led to disagreements over who should play Bond in the next film. That’s assuming we get one and it doesn’t look like that’s going to happen anytime soon.

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