James Bond losing its long-time producers is a huge shift – but what does it mean for 007's future?

The film rights to Ian Fleming's Bond novels were originally purchased by Canadian film producer Harry Saltzman, who later partnered with the American-born Albert R 'Cubby' Broccoli.

The pair's stewardship saw the character become a box office sensation and when Saltzman stepped aside in the 1970s – selling his 50 per cent stake in Danjaq, which holds the trademarks for material related to the Bond films – Broccoli became the chief creative overseer, a role he later bequeathed to his daughter Barbara and stepson Michael.

Barbara Broccoli and Michael G Wilson have been 007's custodians ever since – following Cubby Broccoli's death in 1996, they've been at the helm for eight Bond films, earning a largely positive critical response and making approximately $5.8 billion at the worldwide box office while also overseeing the transition from one hugely popular Bond actor in Pierce Brosnan to another in Daniel Craig.

In 2022, Amazon acquired MGM and with it the rights to distribute the James Bond films – and in December last year, The Wall Street Journal published an article alleging that the relationship between Barbara Broccoli and the streaming giant was strained.

All the same, today's news – that she and Wilson have opted to give up creative control of a franchise that their family has guided and protected from its very beginnings – comes as a huge surprise.

Though the pair will remain co-owners of the series alongside Amazon MGM Studios, it is the latter who will lead on "ushering in the next phase of the legendary 007", to quote Prime Video and Amazon MGM Studios head Mike Hopkins, with Wilson in his words looking "to focus on art and charitable projects" and Broccoli citing his retirement as having influenced her own decision to "focus on my other projects".

It's difficult as a Bond fan not to feel emotional about this changing of the guard – since its inception, the film series has felt as much like a family business as it has a commercial affair, with 'Cubby' Broccoli's children not only inheriting what he'd helped create but also committing to protecting its legacy and securing its future.

Putting those feelings aside, though, in real terms... what does this watershed moment actually mean for 007's future?

If the report from The Wall Street Journal is to be taken at face value, then the most likely result is a significant expansion of the Bond brand on-screen; Broccoli was reportedly keen to preserve the sanctity of the movie franchise and is said to have pushed back on Amazon MGM's desire to push ahead with Bond spin-offs and TV shows.

Now there appears to be nothing standing in the way of any such evolution – 2023's reality competition show 007: Road to a Million might only be the tip of the iceberg when it comes to plans to build out Bond into a sprawling cross-media behemoth to rival Disney's Marvel project.

The casting of the next 007 will also inevitably be impacted – fans might fear Bond's new creative overlords will make a creatively bankrupt choice and that Broccoli/Wilson would have gone down a left-field but ultimately more rewarding avenue.

That's perhaps not quite fair, though – the aforementioned Craig is the only real example of the Broccoli clan taking a significant risk when it came to casting 007 and breaking away from what many would've argued was the classic model, with the likes of Roger Moore and Pierce Brosnan being popular picks prior to their official casting.

Though we'll never known for certain, it's probable that had Broccoli and Wilson remained involved, they wouldn't have strayed far from the formula for their next Bond – again, Broccoli was quoted as insisting that the next actor to take on the mantle be male and ideally British.

The Wall Street Journal did however assert that Amazon MGM was "reluctant to cast an unknown actor" as Daniel Craig's replacement, so it's feasible it might go for a bigger name while Broccoli/Wilson might have fought for more of an up-and-comer.

Beyond these small clues as to Amazon MGM's intentions, the truth is that there's so much we simply don't know about Bond's next steps, the first he'll be taking without the Broccoli family at his side.

More than in any other period in the franchise's 60+ year history, we're in uncharted waters and while Amazon MGM might now have a newly-established freedom, it will also be under enormous pressure not to drop the ball.

Revamping the series for a modern audience while maintaining what fans love about the character, all without the long-standing guardians of the franchise? That might be Bond's most difficult mission yet.

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