Sounds like there’s a big Bond feud brewing behind the scenes

When Amazon bought the classic Hollywood studio MGM a few years back, it also took over MGM’s most lucrative, beloved and prolific film franchise: the James Bond films, whose distribution rights have been in MGM’s hands ever since the studio bought Dr. No distributor United Artists back in 1981. Which means Amazon has also inherited MGM’s long-standing association with Eon Productions, the studio that has produced (almost) every Bond film since 1962 and whose co-head, Barbara Broccoli, has never been afraid to make it clear that she is taking over the reign of the British super spy. Now there are reports that the relationship between the online retail giant and the veteran producer is getting pretty messy, leading to claims that there is a feud brewing that could seriously mess with the franchise’s post-Daniel Craig fortunes.

This is per a report i The Wall Street Journal todayimplying that Broccoli (who regardless of your opinion of some of her particular takes on the character, including that he is got being British, and got being a guy) has more experience “making James Bond movies” than any other person on the planet, isn’t crazy about getting notes from the people who send toilet brushes around the globe. The WSJ The report says Broccoli “has told friends she doesn’t trust the algorithm-centric Amazon of a character she helped mythologize through big-screen storytelling and gut instinct,” and “has complained that Amazon is not a good home for Bond, since the company’s core business is selling everything from toilet paper to vacuum cleaners.” When Amazon executives approached Broccoli about the possibility of putting together some kind of Bond TV spin-offs, she was reportedly blunt, asking, “Have you read the contract?” (Which is: No, no streaming Bond shows.)

It is now three years since the release of Craig’s last Bond film, No time to dieand the lack of forward movement for a franchise that’s usually pretty damn sharky is starting to become noticeable: not only hasn’t a new Bond been chosen, but there’s reportedly not even a script for a new movie floating around . Of course, all of these murmurs should be taken with a grain of salt, as none of it is attributed to anyone willing to put their name to it. But this particular The quote feels telling, allegedly from Broccoli, discussing her new business partners on the franchise that has defined her professional life: “These people are fucking idiots.”