Daniel Craig is raising a (martini) glass to James Bond‘s long-time producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli. The duo announced on Thursday their plans to step back from the 007 franchise and cede creative control to Amazon MGM.
“My respect, admiration and love for Barbara and Michael remain constant and undiminished,” Craig, who played the suave spy in five successful films, said in an exclusive statement to Variety. “I wish Michael a long, relaxing (and well deserved) retirement and whatever ventures Barbara goes on to do, I know they will be spectacular and I hope I can be part of them.”
In a historic agreement that shocked Hollywood, Amazon MGM, Wilson and Broccoli have formed a joint venture to house the James Bond intellectual property rights. The three parties will remain co-owners of the franchise but the studio will have creative control on future projects. Amazon, which bought MGM in 2021 for $8.5 billion, acquired the rights to distribute all James Bond films but only owned 50% of the franchise and was relegated to being a passive partner when it came to artistic choices. Since Craig’s fifth and final turn as the agent with license to kill, in 2021’s “No Time to Die,” there has been endless press speculation about the franchise’s future but zero announcements about definitive next steps.
Wilson, who has co-written the scripts for some of the Bond films along with producing them, has announced he’s retiring from Hollywood. “With my 007 career spanning nearly 60 incredible years, I am stepping back from producing the James Bond films to focus on art and charitable projects,” the 87-year-old said in a statement.
Broccoli, 64, plans to continue working in the film industry but will focus her time and attention elsewhere as a producer. “My life has been dedicated to maintaining and building upon the extraordinary legacy that was handed to Michael and me by our father, producer Cubby Broccoli. I have had the honor of working closely with four of the tremendously talented actors who have played 007 and thousands of wonderful artists within the industry,” she said in a statement. “With the conclusion of ‘No Time to Die’ and Michael retiring from the films, I feel it is time to focus on my other projects.”
