What’s the going rate for James Bond‘s license to kill? Well, Amazon MGM paid $20 million for creative control of the 007 franchise.
Earlier this year, Bond’s long-time producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli stepped back and ceded creative control to Amazon MGM. The three entities, Wilson, Broccoli and Amazon MGM, formed a joint venture to house the intellectual property rights while allowing all three to remain co-owners of the property.
A recent earnings report for Wilson and Broccoli’s company Eon Productions revealed the cost of doing business — and it’s way less than the $1 billion that had initially been reported. “On 20 February 2025, the company entered into an agreement for the sale of its interest in the Bond franchise, all associated assets as well as its subsidiary companies, B24 Limited and B25 Limited. The total consideration for the sale amounted to $20 million (USD),” the report says. However, the deal’s exact structure isn’t clear and could include stock options or profit sharing that would substantially increase the Broccoli family’s payout.
After Amazon purchased MGM for $8.5 billion in 2021, the company acquired the rights to distribute all James Bond films. However the tech company only owned 50% of the franchise and was relegated to being a passive partner in terms of artistic choices. Shortly after the joint venture was announced, Amy Pascal and David Heyman were tapped to produce the next Bond installment. More recently, “Dune” filmmaker Denis Villeneuve was hired to direct while “Peaky Blinders” creator Steven Knight was appointed to write the screenplay.
It’s still unclear, however, who will play the tuxedo-wearing, martini-drinking secret spy after Daniel Craig’s wildly successful tenure ended with 2021’s “No Time to Die.”
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