James Bond in the hands of an American company: shock horror! Amazon's takeover of Britain's iconic Bond franchise has Her Majesty's subjects worried, with some wondering whether 007 still has a future. After months of wrangling between the films' producers and Amazon MGM studio, extensively reported in the British press, the final blow fell on Thursday: the American giant will now preside over the destiny of the world's best-known spy. And it can do as it pleases -- the Broccoli family, which has until now defended the franchise that exported the myth of MI6 glamour worldwide, has ceded creative control to Amazon.
This move has shaken media in the spy's homeland: the day after the deal was announced, daily The Independent asked whether by taking control of the franchise, Amazon had "buried" it. Meanwhile, articles in The Times and The Telegraph newspapers declared that James Bond will "never" be the same. Amazon's exact intentions for the franchise remain unknown.
What is certain, though, is that "Amazon want a return on their investment", Chloe Preece, a professor of marketing at London's ESCP Business School told AFP. To make good on the deal, Amazon is likely to create "spin-offs" or "prequels" as well as capitalise off merchandising, Preece said. Jeff Bezos's group acquired legendary studio MGM in 2022 for $8.
45 billion, but the Broccoli family retained exclusive control of the James Bond brand under it. According to The Times, Amazon shelled out another $1 billion to pr.
