By Chris Evangelista/May 26, 2021 12:00 pm EST
“We are committed to continuing to make James Bond films for the worldwide theatrical audience,” Broccoli and Wilson said in a statement.
The Bond rights are a little sticky. MGM does not flat-out own Bond movies. The rights to earlier films in the series are co-owned by MGM and Danjaq, which is a holding company created by Eon, the company that Broccoli and Wilson run. While Eon produces the films, Danjaq holds the rights to them. The Craig-era Bond movies are co-owned by MGM, Danjaq, and Columbia Pictures (Columbia is owned by Sony). Then you have to take into consideration home video and streaming rights, which appear to be in the hands of MGM.
Variety adds:
Under a deal first hammered out by Albert “Cubby” Broccoli, MGM has the right to finance and distribute all of the Bond movies, and the studio splits the profits with Eon. However, Broccoli’s heirs and Eon’s chiefs, Barbara Broccoli and her half-brother Michael G. Wilson, still have final say on everything from the film’s marketing and distribution plans to Craig’s successor. Together, they have unprecedented creative control over the franchise.
