Jason Bailey, Guest Columnist

Amazon Wants to Turn James Bond Into Slop

Now that the streamer has creative control over Hollywood’s most durable film series, the list of possible disasters is endless.

February 27, 2025 at 1:30 PM UTC

By Jason Bailey

Jason Bailey is a film critic and historian. He is the author, most recently, of "Gandolfini: Jim, Tony, and the Life of a Legend."

James Bond is not in good hands.
Sources: Getty Images, Universal Pictures

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Late last year, the Wall Street Journal dropped a bombshell report about one of the biggest stories in the entertainment business: the stagnation of James Bond. When Amazon.com Inc. spent $8.5 billion to buy Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer back in 2022, the crown jewel of the legendary film studio was the venerable super-spy. But for decades, the character has been controlled by the Broccoli family (first by producer Albert “Cubby” Broccoli, and now by his daughter Barbara), who were reluctant to work with Amazon.

Then, last week, the Broccolis had a change of heart and made a separate deal, ceding creative control to the streamer. Though members of the family did not comment for the Journal story, perhaps the leaks within it were a calculated hardball tactic, allowing them to air their (legitimate) concerns and secure a bigger payday.