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In 2022, Amazon paid a cool $8.5 billion to buy MGM, giving them the rights to release future films in the James Bond franchise. However, there’s been no real news about the super-spy’s next appearance, and now we know that’s because longtime rights holders and producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson have clashed with Amazon over Bond’s future. Broccoli reportedly believes Amazon’s bosses are “fucking idiots” for their plans to make a bunch of Marvel-style James Bond spinoffs, and not only is he right, but the delay it’s caused will likely save the franchise from its own excesses.
Broccoli turns rotten towards the Amazon
According to the Wall Street Journal, the main reason behind this James Bond delay is Broccoli refusing to develop new films in the franchise with Amazon because he hates their whole attitude. Not only is she upset that the company wants to turn this beloved film franchise into a hodgepodge of TV and film spinoffs, but she’s upset that they’re referring to Bond’s future adventures as “content.” And although not every film released under Broccoli is a winner (Ghostwas a hot mess, for example), it’s clear that her stubbornness is preventing Amazon from collapsing one of the world’s biggest franchises.
Broccoli has reportedly described Amazon as holding the James Bond franchise “hostage” and the delay it has caused appears to be her way of saving the super-spy from his captors. Some fans might be cynical that this is just a behind-the-scenes power play, a way to maintain relevance and control in this brave new Bond world. However, we see it differently: Broccoli has learned from the failures of both Miracle and Amazon and doesn’t want her own beloved character to fall victim to the excesses of corporate greed.
James Bond Delay Preventing an MCU-type disaster
The Marvel Cinematic Universe has been linked, of course, from the very beginning Nick Fury collapse of the post-credits sequence Iron Man. However, you could argue that the beginning of the end for this franchise (or at least the beginning of the superhero fatigue that changed The Marvels to a big-budget flop) began by trying to cram as much spinoff content as humanly possible into Disney+. The release of the James Bond movies is considered a major cinematic event, and this delay prevents it from being cheapened by a bunch of crappy TV shows.
Speaking of which, it’s almost impossible to discuss the future of James Bond on Amazon without discussing how the company has dealt with lord of the rings. Only 37 percent Rings of Power viewers watched the entire first season and beyond Rotten tomatoesPopcorn Meter shows that viewers gave the show a dismal 49 percent. The second season was slightly better than the first, but the fact that more people are streaming Guys is an indicator that this spinoff failed to impress a general audience, even as it drove away Tolkien purists for its arbitrary changes to the lore.
It’s impossible to know everything about what James Bond producer Barbara Broccoli thinks of Amazon, but what we do know suggests that her delay is preventing her legendary character from facing the same problems that Marvel and The Lord of the Rings have faced. It’s clear that thinking of amazing franchises as “content” and churning out a bunch of spinoffs that no one asked for is the fastest way to dilute the brand and drive viewers away. And when you get it right, when a new Bond actor is cast, it can doom the series to a failure it hasn’t known since. A license to kill became the highest-grossing Bond film in America.
Ironically, it wasn’t that long ago that the franchise’s biggest battle was over which talented actor (or maybe actress) would replace Daniel Craig in the title role. We now know that much worse could happen to James Bond than bad casting… without this delay, it could have already devolved into mindless content designed to do nothing more than sell action figures and streaming members. Thankfully, Broccoli has stepped in and could be our last line of defense against enduring a slew of Bond spin-offs worse than season four Guysand for that we are eternally grateful.
Source: The Wall Street Journal
