Now Amazon has acquired MGM, the James Bond franchise will eventually arrive on Prime. While it's possible the company will look to expand 007's world on the small screen, it's Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson who ultimately call the shots with how the iconic Ian Fleming creation is portrayed.
That means they have the final say on everything from marketing and distribution plans to who plays the secret agent, and that's not going to change with Amazon as the new owners of MGM.
There were rumours last year that MGM was looking to offload No Time to Die to a streaming service for a whopping $600 million or more, but a joint statement from Broccoli and Wilson confirms that the movie is still heading to theaters. "We are committed to continuing to make James Bond films for the worldwide theatrical audience," they told Variety.
It's unclear how long the theatrical window for No Time to Die and future James Bond movies will be before they arrive on Amazon Prime Video, and this chapter is slated for October 8 after a series of delays. How open the producers would be to expanding the franchise on television is also hard to say.
Either way, the James Bond movies are a huge addition to Amazon's slate and gives the streamer a foothold in theaters that opens a whole new revenue stream (no pun intended) for the company.
Details about future plans for 007 are unlikely to be revealed until this merger is complete.