COVID has wrecked any hopes of major studio films being released in 2020, and No Time to Die is one of the biggest casualties. The first blockbuster to move in response to the pandemic, it was recently shifted from November to next April, creating another chain reaction of release date changes in Hollywood.
Over the weekend, it was reported that MGM had considered a move to streaming for the next James Bond film, but Deadline has shared more details about why those talks ultimately stalled.
Meetings were held with Netflix, Apple, and Amazon with the hope of exploring a possible streaming debut, with the studio shopping around a $600 million one-year contract. That would mean one of those services would have exclusive rights to the film for a 365-day period, giving MGM the option to then shop it around again, while also exploring DVD/Blu-ray release options.
Streamers weren't willing to pay that, however, with only half of the sum being offered. No Time to Die producer Barbara Broccoli then nixed the idea completely, so a theatrical release is once again the plan.
Talks happened back in September before the movie was pushed from November, so it seems any chance of this happening have now gone out the window. MGM clearly hoped to recoup its costs with this $600 million premiere, but it wasn't worth spending that amount for an increase in subscribers.
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