A recent report details how much Amazon paid to acquire the rights to the James Bond franchise. The first 25 James Bond films, starting with 1962’s Dr. No and continuing through 2021’s No Time to Die, were all produced by EON Productions.
As a big Bond fan, I was pretty surprised to learn back in February 2025 that Amazon, through MGM Studios, had taken complete creative control of the whole franchise – that includes the next film, Bond 26, and everything going forward. It’s a big shift, and I’m definitely curious to see what they do with it.
According to Deadline, the studio purchased the rights to the famous James Bond franchise from EON Productions for $20 million. Initial reports suggested the deal could have been worth up to $1 billion. The purchase included EON’s stake in the franchise, all related properties, and its subsidiaries, B24 Limited and B25 Limited.
I was really surprised to read the latest news about the Bond deal. Apparently, EON Productions’ financial reports show Amazon paid a lot less than initially reported – about 98% less, actually! While Amazon hasn’t officially confirmed the number, it looks like the deal might include stock options for Amazon, on top of a straight cash payment.
As a film buff, I was really struck by how little $20 million actually is when you consider the scale of the James Bond films. It’s amazing to think that just one of the recent Bond movies – any of the five starring Daniel Craig, from Casino Royale all the way through No Time to Die – cost over $150 million to make! When you add up the budgets for all those films, it’s more than seven times what Amazon reportedly paid to acquire the entire franchise. It really puts things into perspective!
Interestingly, if you don’t account for inflation, the last James Bond movie to cost under $20 million to make was The Spy Who Loved Me from 1977, featuring Roger Moore.
Considering inflation, Dr. No was the cheapest Bond film to make – its original $1.1 million budget in 1962 is about $11.72 million today, making it the only film in the series that cost less than $20 million.
Even considering potential stock options, the price might have been good value for EON Productions. Reports from Deadline show that EON’s revenue in 2024 was just $16.3 million, with a profit of around $2 million before taxes.
EON has a wide range of films, but a recent decline in earnings might be linked to the long pause in making James Bond movies. They earned around $390 million in 2021, boosted by the release of No Time to Die, suggesting the Bond franchise significantly impacts their overall financial performance.
This acquisition is expected to be a major win for Amazon MGM, considering the last five James Bond films have collectively earned over $500 million globally. Notably, 2012’s Skyfall was a massive success, grossing $1.108 billion and becoming the second highest-grossing film of the year, only behind The Avengers.
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2025-10-22 22:42