The James Bond franchise has undergone a major change over the past few days, as the rights to this iconic character have officially been given to Amazon Studios after years of negotiations with Ian Fleming’s estate. This is huge news that will undoubtedly change the future of the series in countless ways, but not everything about Amazon’s acquisition of James Bond is as clean and optimistic as it may seem. The transfer of rights actually poses several challenges for the studio, which will clearly fight to keep the franchise alive in the future.

Additionally, this acquisition feels particularly bleak for those who have held the rights to James Bond for so many decades – particularly Barbara Broccoli, a long-time producer of the movies. The Broccoli family has been involved with every single James Bond film since Dr. No, and their retirement from the series will have undeniable consequences that may be difficult to navigate. Sadly, a recent report seems to suggest that negotiations between the Broccolis and Amazon Studios weren’t as productive as this outcome suggests.

New Report Details Why James Bond Rights Have Been Sold To Amazon MGM Now

It Seems As Though Broccoli Considered Bond Done For Good

An expository report from Puck has offered some deeper insight into how this major acquisition came to be, and the overwhelming opinion seems to be that “Amazon simply wore [Barbara] Broccoli down” and her relinquishing of the rights wasn’t exactly what she wanted from the beginning. The report states that: “Barbara was forced to contemplate a tougher and lonelier path on future films” after her half-brother and professional partner Michael G. Wilson expressed his intentions to step back, and Amazon arrived at the perfect time to take that burden off her shoulders.

The report also suggests that Broccoli was unsure whether Bond would have a future at all, claiming that “Barbara had met with actors [but] there was nothing Bond-related in serious development.” This seemingly confirms the speculation that Aaron Taylor-Johnson was being considered to take over as James Bond, but nothing was firmly in place as the estate was “stumped about how to replace [Daniel] Craig.” The acquisition allowed Broccoli to hand over the reins of a franchise she was unsure what to do with – and get paid in the process.

Why Amazon Having Creative Control Of James Bond is So Worrying To Me

The Studio’s Vision For The Franchise Will Be Very Different

Ultimately, the news that Amazon has ᴀssumed full control of the James Bond franchise is disheartening for several reasons. Firstly, it represents a more general shift towards big-budget studios ᴀsserting their dominance over smaller production companies who can’t necessarily keep up with their immense influence and creative control – which can’t be healthy for the longevity of the franchise. The James Bond movies being owned by the same people since the beginning was a huge draw of the franchise, but that important connection has now been severed.

Secondly, Amazon’s inevitable James Bond “universe” will be much more focused on content; there will undoubtedly be a shift towards sequels, prequels, and spin-offs that could easily end up favoring quanтιтy over quality. Bond will be franchised in all directions, and this means that less time will be spent making each project as good as it can possibly be. Even the industry doesn’t sound too optimistic about Barbara Broccoli leaving the Bond franchise, with the Puck report claiming: “there isn’t much belief around town right now that Amazon can pull this off.”

Is There Still Hope For James Bond?

We’ll Have To Wait And See What Amazon Does With Its New Franchise

As always, it’s important to hang on to whatever hope remains of this disappointing situation with the James Bond franchise. Amazon hasn’t actually done anything yet, and much of these concerns remain purely hypothetical. It may feel depressing to see James Bond get “swallowed by the algorithm,” as Puck ᴀsserts, but Amazon won’t let this franchise die without a fight. If they are cautious and patient, and get the right directors behind the camera, the transition may be subtle enough that audiences aren’t put off by it.

There have been countless discussions in recent years about acclaimed filmmakers like Christopher Nolan getting involved and directing a Bond movie, but these ideas have ultimately been shelved because of Broccoli and Wilson’s creative control issues. Now they’re not involved, the chances of seeing this happen are much more plausible. Amazon would surely want it to happen too, as the involvement of somebody as popular as Christopher Nolan would be an excellent way of proving they’re still interested in making quality James Bond movies, not just cash cows.