HE has seen off Russian terror organisations, survived explosions, dodged 4,000 bullets and narrowly avoided having his privates lopped off with a laser beam.
But now James Bond faces his biggest threat to date — surviving Jeff Bezos’s franchise-crunching business colossus after his Amazon MGM Studios took “creative control” of the famous spy series.
Sean Connery played Ian Fleming’s iconic spy in 1960-67, 1971 and again in 1983[/caption]
Roger Moore played Bond from 1972 to 1985, pictured With Maud Adams, left, and Britt Ekland in 1974’s The Man With The Golden Gun[/caption]
Timothy Dalton stepped into Bond’s shoes for two tours between 1986-1994[/caption]
Barbara Broccoli and her stepbrother Michael G Wilson, the movies’ producers for the past 30 years, are stepping away from novelist Ian Fleming’s legendary franchise.
But many 007 fans fear for its future under Amazon — which they worry will dilute the franchise with a flood of poor-quality spin-offs and merchandise.
Their concern follows an alleged stand-off between Barbara and the global business giant — with an insider who has met Barbara multiple times suspecting the duo have now “cut their losses” because they “can’t work amicably” with Amazon.
They told The Sun: “Ultimately, it’s a bad day for Bond. The siblings have always been very protective of Bond’s image and would never have wanted it diluted or exploited like Amazon hopes to do.
Spin-offs
“This is absolutely terrible news. I don’t have high hopes. Amazon will want to exploit the name without putting in real quality, and the first thing to emerge will likely be a terrible TV series.”
And as we report on Page 3 today, there are already rumours of a spin-off for 007’s faithful secretary Moneypenny, starring Florence Pugh, along with possible projects for other big MI6 characters, an animated series and straight-to-streaming flicks.
Such is the esteem in which Bond is held that only one person could escort Her Majesty the Queen to the 2012 Olympics.
And threats to water down the legacy are likely to have grated with Barbara, 64, who insiders claimed had planned to “hold Bond hostage from Amazon for as long as she sees fit”, reported the Wall Street Journal.
Tensions were first aired publicly in December, when it was reported that Barbara told pals that Amazon studio bosses were “f***ing idiots” and she was insulted by their description of Bond as “content”.
This could have rung the death knell for the partnership, which began in 2021 when Amazon bought MGM Studios for £6.7billion to acquire the rights for its crown jewel 007, alongside the Rocky, Legally Blonde and RoboCop films.
At the time, heads at the £1.8trillion online retail and streaming behemoth were confident they could win over Barbara and Michael and convince them to expand the 007 universe, inspired by Marvel’s masses of superhero flicks.
But cracks soon began to emerge in the partnership, with Michael, 83, allegedly complaining to pals about struggling to land meetings with anyone above Level Six — six floors below the Amazon chief.
Amazon disputed this, claiming he had met senior leaders. Then in November, while receiving an honorary Academy Award, Barbara notably thanked many people in her acceptance speech but did not mention Amazon.
She said Bond gave her “the greatest life imaginable” but also complained the film industry was “playing it safe” and during “times of crisis like this”, they needed “brave” film- makers.
But many fear a Bond rebranding will mean the end of the gun-toting, gadget-filled bonkbusters of the past and see the so-called “worst-case scenario” — a female Bond.
That was a major no-no for Barbara, who insisted 007 must be a man and saw casting him as being as serious as choosing a husband.
Perhaps in an ironic move and to spit in the face of the legendary producer, within hours of the announcement of the duo’s departure, Amazon boss Bezos flippantly posted: “Who’d you pick as the next Bond?”
And while Amazon has money to throw at projects, its track record with legendary franchises has been far from stellar.
Despite spending a reported $1billion on Lord Of The Rings: The Rings Of Power — the most expensive TV series to date — it has been called “all spectacle, no substance”.
Only 37 per cent of Americans completed the first season, with fans labelling it “so bad it’s hilarious”, “God-tier garbage” and “crap that keeps getting worse”.
A similar fate befell the first Bond spin-off, the game show 007: Road To A Million, which has been compared to a “knockoff” version of BBC’s Race Across The World.
The audience reportedly plummeted in the first six minutes of the show and its host, Succession star Brian Cox. And Disney’s numerous Star Wars reboots have faced similar lukewarm reviews.
While Barbara and Michael will remain co-owners of the Bond franchise, it is unclear how heavily their presence will be felt in future projects.
Matthew Field, vice president of the Ian Fleming Foundation, said: “It would be stupid not to lean into them for advice.
“No one on the planet understands Bond better than them — they probably know him better than Ian Fleming did. If Amazon puts the wrong people in control it will go badly wrong.
“They need a producer like James Gunn, from the Marvel Cinematic Universe and DC, who can see, live and breathe the character. It needs a new lease of life.”
Matthew predicts many TV projects ahead, including a period Bond, plus young, animated and spin-off Bonds following Moneypenny, M and Q, and straight-to-streaming Bond films alongside the “tentpole theatrical releases”.
Swedish mega-fan Gunnar James Bond Schafer, who legally changed his name to the character’s in 2007, said: “I’m ped off. This was Broccoli and Wilson’s child and you don’t sell your children or abandon them, even when things get tough.
Sean Connery and Honor Blackman as Pussy Galore in Goldfinger[/caption]
Pierce Brosnan played the lead role from 1994 to 2004[/caption]
Bond escorted Her Majesty the Queen to the 2012 Olympics[/caption]
Bond’s iconic Aston Martin, complete with countless gadgets[/caption]
“Now the legacy risks being lost forever. I believe Amazon will cater to the US market now. They will probably cast an American Bond and won’t give a s*** about Europe.”
In a statement on Thursday, Barbara — whose father Albert “Cubby” Broccoli co-founded Bond production company Eon — described working on the franchise as an “honour” and said she would commit her time to “other projects”, hinting she is now leaving 007 in Amazon’s hands.
She added: “My life has been dedicated to maintaining and building upon the extraordinary legacy that was handed to Michael and me by our father.”
Daniel Craig, the most recent Bond, whose final film after five outings was No Time To Die in 2021, said his “respect, admiration and love” for Barbara and Michael “remains constant and undiminished”.
At last year’s Oscars, when Barbara and Michael won the Thalberg Memorial Award, one of the industry’s highest accolades and a crowning glory moment for them, Daniel praised them for standing their ground.
He spoke of admiring their “integrity in holding on to your singular vision”, despite many people and organisations trying to “put their own footprint on Bond”.
But now with Barbara and Michael no longer at the 007 helm, it is feared the legacy could be tarnished with a tsunami of feeble spin-offs, merchandise and even theme park attractions.
While Bond has overcome metal-toothed brutes, sex-strangling seductresses and hordes of henchmen, it may be billionaire Bezos who proves the villain that finally kills off Britain’s most famous fictional spy.
THEO FAVE TO TAKE ON STAR ROLE
By TOM BRYDEN
SPECULATION is wild over who is likely to replace Daniel Craig as 007 – and who will fill the director’s chair for the franchise’s next instalment.
White Lotus star Theo James is bookie’s favourite to be the next Bond, according to William Hill. But the actor, who is of Greek descent, has previously said he thinks there are “better people for [the] job”.
And he claimed his mates tease him by calling him “Bondopoulos, the Greek Bond”.
His 6/4 odds could be down to his standout role in last year’s Netflix hit The Gentlemen – amid rumours the series’ director Guy Ritchie could direct Bond’s next outing.
Second in the running to order Martinis shaken, not stirred, is Happy Valley star James Norton, with odds of 2/1.
He will be working with Ritchie this year on another project.
And third favourite on the bookie’s list, with odds of 5/2, is new kid on the block Harris Dickinson.
The Babygirl actor’s career has been skyrocketing in recent years and some think he could provide the fresh face Amazon is after.
Meanwhile, director Danny Boyle could also be back in the running after having failed to get his previous 007 script over the line due to creative differences in 2018.
But with Barbara Broccoli out of the way, it’s anyone’s guess if Amazon might give Boyle a second chance to bring a bit of Trainspotting-style grit and realism to the suave spy thrillers.
Martini-drinking 007 was created in Ian Fleming novels[/caption]
