Amazon founder Jeff Bezos is bent on acquiring full control of the James Bond franchise and wants to buy out producer Barbara Broccoli’s stake, according to reports.
This comes after Ms Broccoli allegedly called the Amazon executives “f**king idiots,” according to a Wall Street Journal report. Upon learning about her comment, Mr Bezos reportedly instructed executives to buy out her stake no matter what the cost. “I don’t care what it costs; get rid of her,” the billionaire is believed to have said, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Amazon has reportedly already paid nearly $1 billion to acquire the franchise from Ms Broccoli and her half-brother, Michael G Wilson.
Ms Broccoli, the daughter of Bond producer Albert “Cubby” Broccoli, started working as a teenager on the Bond films. She has also co-produced movies with her father. The tensions between Amazon and Ms Broccoli had been brewing for a while, reports say.
In 2022, Amazon bought MGM (now Amazon MGM Studios) for $8.5 billion, which gave the company partial control over the iconic spy series. While Amazon wants to expand the Bond franchise and make it exclusive content for Prime Video, Ms Broccoli wants the film franchise to remain a theatrical one.
The James Bond franchise is co-owned by MGM Studios and EON Productions. After their father’s death in 1995, the Broccoli siblings inherited EON Productions and have since then maintained creative control over the 007 franchise.
According to reports, when Mr Broccoli passed the responsibility to her daughter, he told her to protect the Bond franchise at all costs and not let studios take creative control so that it remains true to its roots.
The first James Bond movie, Dr. No, was released in 1962. Since then, the franchise has had 25 films.
The last James Bond movie, No Time to Die, was released in 2021. It was also Daniel Craig’s last project playing the iconic character.
There is no official confirmation about the next Bond movie due to the ongoing conflict between Amazon and Bond producers, putting the franchise on hold.