March 25 update: Amazon MGM studios officially announced that Amy Pascal and David Heyman will produce the upcoming James Bond movie. Pascal and Heyman will produce through Pascal Pictures and Heyday Films, respectively.
“James Bond is one of the most iconic characters in the history of cinema,” said Amy Pascal and David Heyman in a press release. “We are humbled to follow in the footsteps of Barbara Broccoli and Michael Wilson, who made so many extraordinary films and honored and excited to keep the spirit of Bond very much alive as he embarks on his next adventure.”
March 21: First, Amazon acquired creative control of the James Bond franchise. The next order of business is finding producers to lead 007 into the Amazon era.
Per Matt Belloni of Puck, Amy Pascal and David Heyman are in talks to “shepherd the next iteration of James Bond” for Amazon MGM Studios. Nothing is official until the transaction with Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson closes. However, Pascal and Heyman are the rumored top choices of Amazon executives.
Pascal and Heyman have a strong pedigree of running popular franchises. Pascal is best known for producing Tom Holland’s Spider-Man movies, which have combined to gross nearly $4 billion worldwide. While working at Sony, Pascal oversaw most of Daniel Craig’s Bond outings, including Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace, Skyfall, and Spectre.
Heyman produced all eight Harry Potter movies through his HeyDay Films banner. The British producer also produced recent box office hits, including Wonka and Barbie, the latter being 2023’s highest-grossing movie.
Belloni notes that Amazon MGM Studios plans to release the next Bond movie in theaters before developing any spinoffs or TV shows.
If Pascal and Heyman sign on for Bond, the next task will be finding the director and writer of the next 007 movie. Christopher Nolan remains the rumored top choice for Bond. It all comes down to Nolan’s interest in the espionage project.
After acquiring MGM in 2022, Amazon finally gained creative control of Bond last month in a historic deal. Amazon reportedly paid $1 billion to Broccoli and Wilson for these creative rights.
With 007 in its hands, Amazon now faces immense pressure to make a successful Bond and steer it into the future.
