March 1, 2025 - Amazon MGM Studios has bought over the creative control of the James Bond films franchise from the Broccoli family. After buying MGM for $8.45 billion in 2022, Amazon now has the rights to distribute all James Bond films. The company purchased the creative rights to the franchise from Barbara Broccoli and Michael Wilson.

Commenting on the deal, actor Timothy Dalton who has starred in two Bond films - The Living Daylights (1987) and Licence to Kill (1989) - said that he was “very, very surprised and shocked” by the deal. “I have no idea what Amazon would do with it, and I have no idea what the relationship of Amazon to the Broccolis will be... But it is a damn fine series of movies. I was watching it when I was young, we all were. It’s been part of our lives, so anything that threatens it is kind of sad.”

“It is one of the few wonderful stories we’ve got in film that is British. The leading character is British. We can call it our own,” he added.

He wished Amazon “good luck,” adding “I do wish them all the very, very best. They'll be doing their best to make a lot of money, so hopefully they will make good movies.”

The most recent Bond was played by British actor Daniel Craig who did the latest movie in the Bond series, No Time to Die which released in 2021 and earned Rs 7,800 crore.

The Bond films, which began in 1962, have earned Rs 1.80 trillion over 60 years. Appearing in 27 films, the character of James Bond has been played by seven different actors and is universally loved.