Hollywood was left shaken and stirred when Barbara Broccoli and Michael G Wilson, who have ruled the James Bond movies with an iron fist since the 1990s, announced last week that they were ceding creative control of 007 to streaming giant Amazon.
As a source who’s worked on Bond for decades told me: ‘Everyone is devastated. No one thought Bond, the quintessential British hero, would end up in the hands of [Amazon boss] Jeff Bezos.
‘Bezos is like a real-life Bond villain, and now the future of one of the most iconic characters in British cinema history is at his mercy.
‘Everyone is making jokes about what the first Bond film under Bezos will be called. Are we going to have ‘Dr No Password Sharing’?’
Jokes aside, while the announcement seemed out of the blue, I’ve spoken to people on both sides of the reported $1 billion (£800million) deal who say the behind-the-scenes drama has been simmering for years – and only finally boiled over last week.
Insiders claim the Broccoli-controlled film franchise had been in ‘crisis’ since Daniel Craig’s last outing as the super spy in 2021’s No Time To Die, and went into ‘death spiral mode’ when Amazon bought MGM Studios, the home of Bond, for $8.5billion the following year.
Crucially, this gave Amazon the rights to the existing 25 Bond films, which have generated a staggering $7.5 billion at the global box office to date.
Yet creative control remained firmly in the hands of Ms Broccoli and Mr Wilson, the daughter and stepson of legendary producer Albert ‘Cubby’ Broccoli, who acquired the film rights from Bond creator Ian Fleming in 1961.
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos with his partner Lauren Sanchez. A source who has worked on 007 films for decades likened the tycoon to ‘a real-life Bond villain’
Barbara Broccoli, daughter of Bond producer Albert ‘Cubby’ Broccoli, with the last 007 actor Daniel Craig
Insiders claim the Broccoli-controlled film franchise had been in ‘crisis’ since Daniel Craig ‘s last outing as the super spy in 2021’s No Time To Die
One source who spoke to Ms Broccoli said: ‘Barbara and Amazon never saw eye to eye. To her, Bond is her family’s legacy, something that must be nurtured and protected. She once told set designers to remove a door handle to a villain’s lair because it didn’t look ‘evil’ enough.
‘That’s the level of her attention to detail. She controls everything from the script to what bikini a Bond girl wears.
‘Amazon wanted spin-off TV shows showing things like Miss Moneypenny’s early years. In the end Barbara decided it was easier to take the money rather than carry on fighting.’
An Amazon insider, meanwhile, sniffed: ‘It wasn’t a matter of if we would get full control of Bond, it was more ‘how much will it cost?’ Everyone has their price.’
While the precise details of the deal are unknown, I understand Ms Broccoli and Mr Wilson signed a profit-sharing deal for all future Bond movies and spin-off shows, and will acquire Amazon shares along with a substantial one-off payment.
Seven decades have passed since the suave super agent was introduced to us, in Ian Fleming’s 1952 novel Casino Royale. Bond was an immediate hit, but it was his appearances on the big screen that gripped the public imagination and spawned a legend.
Cubby Broccoli acquired the movie rights to all of Fleming’s novels in 1961 and started Eon Productions, which fittingly stands for ‘everything or nothing’.
Bond became a worldwide phenomenon, with his Walther PPK pistol, Aston Martin packed with hidden gadgets, lust for women and memorable adversaries including Ernst Blofeld, metal-toothed Jaws and hat-throwing Oddjob.
London-based Eon has produced 25 Bond films, starting with 1962’s Dr No. It has turned seven actors into superstars including Sean Connery (who many consider the original and best Bond), Roger Moore and, for the last five movies, Daniel Craig. Ms Broccoli, 64, and her stepbrother Mr Wilson, 83, took over from their father in 1995.
One source who spoke to Ms Broccoli said: ‘Barbara and Amazon never saw eye to eye. To her, Bond is her family’s legacy, something that must be nurtured and protected’
Barbara Broccoli and US-British film producer Michael G. Wilson pose on the red carpet after arriving to attend the World Premiere of the James Bond 007 film No Time to Die
James Bond has been a quintessentially British production for decades
Bezos, the second-richest man on the planet – after Elon Musk – is a massive film fan and adores 007
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'RIP James Bond': 007 fans react with fury as 'creative control' is handed over to Amazon
Privately Mr Wilson, who has had cameo roles in every film since 1977, began talking about retiring to focus on his philanthropic work shortly after the Amazon/MGM deal. A source said: ‘That left Barbara very much alone to fight for the future of Bond.’
While there has been speculation about who will take over as 007 ever since Craig was killed off in a hail of missile fire at the end of No Time To Die, reports that actors such as Tom Hardy and Aaron Taylor-Johnson had been anointed were wide of the mark.
One friend of Ms Broccoli said: ‘Barbara had meetings in her offices at Pinewood Studios [where Bond is filmed when not on location] and she met Aaron and others. But there was never a story, script or director so any meetings were very much her seeing what talent is out there. It was clear to many of us who worked on previous Bond films that things were in crisis, nothing was moving forward. It went into death spiral mode once Amazon bought MGM and control of the Bond library.’
The Wall Street Journal claimed Ms Broccoli slammed Amazon executives as ‘f****** idiots’ for describing Bond as ‘content’, a modern term referring to digital information and entertainment, which she felt demeaned the historical legacy of the character.
She railed against Amazon’s plans to create a ‘Bond universe’ similar to the Marvel universe with its dozens of superhero movies and spin-offs. Ms Broccoli cited the sale of Lucasfilm, the company started by director George Lucas, to the Walt Disney Company for $4 billion in 2012 as an example of what could go wrong when a beloved brand is taken over by Hollywood executives focused on the bottom line rather than the long-term future of a franchise.
‘Disney took Star Wars and diluted it with endless TV series and characters that bore no resemblance to the original stories and characters fans loved,’ a former Disney executive said. ‘Look what happened to Doctor Who. Hollywood took control of that and you’ve had increasingly woke storylines which alienated fans.’
Yet Amazon executives reportedly grew tired of Ms Broccoli’s pushbacks and her habit of quoting her father, who had said: ‘Don’t have temporary people making permanent decisions.’
The situation was at an impasse until earlier this month when Amazon made the family ‘an offer they couldn’t refuse’. The friend said: ‘In Barbara and Michael’s minds, they created a legacy to stand alongside the films their father made which will be considered the golden era of Bond.
‘But it’s futile to push back against change. Hollywood has gone from a town dominated by powerful producers to a place where streamers like Amazon and Netflix rule.
‘Amazon will monetise the hell out of Bond. They have millions of customers they can sell Bond-related content and products to.’
Producer Barbara Broccoli, right, and actor Daniel Craig, pictured together in April 2019
Man with the Golden Gun, starring Roger Moore as James Bond, was released in 1974
Sean Connery (pictured with Kim Basinger in Never Say Never Again) also took up the Bond role
Timothy Dalton starred as Bond in two films (Pictured in Licence To Kill, 1989)
Pierce Brosnan later took up the mantle of Bond (Pictured in Goldeneye, released in 1995)
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For all the naysayers, is Bond doomed to failure under Amazon?
Not necessarily. Last week’s deal was spearheaded by Mike Hopkins, head of Prime Video and Amazon MGM Studios who, for many years, was my next-door neighbour here in LA.
Whip-smart and extremely hard-working, he built his career acquiring and launching channels for Rupert Murdoch’s Fox empire, becoming one of the most powerful men in Hollywood, proving that nice guys can finish first.
If anyone can steer Bond safely into the future, he can.
Mike has successfully helmed Sony Pictures and Hulu, and has developed shows including The Handmaid’s Tale.
In the five years since he joined Amazon, he has turned franchises such as the Jack Ryan and Jack Reacher series into bona fide hits. Why should Bond be any different?
And while many are quick to criticise, Bezos, the second-richest man on the planet – after Elon Musk – is a massive film fan and adores 007.
Someone who spoke to Bezos recently said he was ‘determined to gain full control’ over Bond because he believes Amazon can ‘take the character forward in new and exciting ways’.
When I mentioned this to someone who worked on the last Bond film, they shot back that Bezos also took JRR Tolkien’s The Lord Of The Rings and created a fantasy spin-off – The Lord Of The Rings: The Rings Of Power – which has been criticised for failing to live up to the quality of the books and earlier films.
Ms Broccoli has always been insistent that Bond should be played by a British man, saying it is in the ‘DNA of the character’
Sean Connery pictured with Albert (Cubby) Broccoli, who acquired the film rights from Bond creator Ian Fleming in 1961
Cubby (pictured with Roger Moore) acquired the movie rights to all of Fleming’s novels in 1961 and started Eon Productions, which fittingly stands for ‘everything or nothing’
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Bezos also oversaw a Bond spin-off called 007: Road To A Million in 2023, which had contestants competing in Bond-style stunts.
The show’s presenter, Succession’s Brian Cox, told reporters he thought he had been hired as a villain in a Bond movie before realising it was a reality show.
‘Barbara signed off on Road To A Million before MGM was sold to Amazon, and to say she was disappointed is an understatement,’ an insider said.
‘That’s why she pushed back so hard against Amazon taking Bond and developing spin-off shows instead of focusing on the movies.’
Ms Broccoli has always been insistent that Bond should be played by a British man, saying it is in the ‘DNA of the character’.
She was open to Bond being played by a non-white actor but insisted the films should always open in cinemas first.
When Covid closed cinemas as No Time To Die was about to open, she refused to let it premiere on a streaming service, instead waiting 18 months for the pandemic to subside. The film ended up grossing nearly $800 million globally.
If Amazon does move away from theatrical releases, it could signal disaster for British cinema.
Skyfall and No Time To Die are ranked two and three on the list of the most successful films ever released in the UK.
Several cinema chains – already struggling – could go under without a successful big screen Bond. So who can make that happen now?
Talking to people in Hollywood yesterday, the name I heard over and over was Oppenheimer director Christopher Nolan.
For starters, he is a Brit, born in London and is beloved by fans and critics alike for blockbusters such as Inception and The Dark Knight (part of the Batman universe).
Oppenheimer won seven Oscars last year, including Best Picture and Best Director, for Nolan. The only snag with him, though, is that Bond fans would have to wait.
Nolan is currently developing an adaptation of Homer’s The Odyssey which will start shooting this year for release in July 2026. An Amazon source said: ‘That means he wouldn’t be free to start working on a new Bond until next year.’
Other potential names include Greta Gerwig, who wrote and directed Barbie, and even Daniel Craig, who said on Friday: ‘My respect, admiration and love for Barbara and Michael remain constant and undiminished.
‘I wish Michael a long, relaxing and well-deserved retirement, and whatever ventures Barbara goes on to do I know they will be spectacular and I hope I can be part of them.’
My Bond sources would love Craig to drive the character forward, but this time from behind the camera. One said: ‘Daniel played Bond five times, he knows the character inside and out. He was immersed in the creative process from the script to planning stunts. He’d be great.’
For her part, Ms Broccoli is developing a remake of the children’s film Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, written, like Bond was, by Ian Fleming. ‘My life has been dedicated to maintaining and building upon the extraordinary legacy that was handed to Michael and me by our father… I feel it is time to focus on my other projects,’ she said.
Whatever ‘Bond 26’ (as the next film is known for now) brings, the drama around the casting of a new 007, the secrets of the plot – and the new villain of course – will keep millions of fans intrigued.
Jeff Bezos, a figure some have cruelly compared to cat-stroking Bond villain Ernst Blofeld, has taken to social media asking: ‘Who’d you pick as the next Bond?’
Amid the rampant speculation, one thing seems fairly certain: the next baddie is unlikely to be a bald-headed billionaire bent on world domination. For that would surely hit too close to home…