‘Spectre’ Finally Gets to $200 Million, But We’re Still Waiting on Bond Rights News
It has taken the 24th 007 film four months to hit the box-office milestone. MGM, Eon and Broccoli family are taking even longer to make a call on a distribution partner
The latest James Bond movie, “Spectre,” should cross $200 million in domestic box-office on Thursday.
It’s taken the suave spy nearly four months to get there, and Sony raised the theater count from 47 to 340 last weekend to make sure it did. But the wait for the bigger news — who will handle U.S. distribution on future 007 films — has been nearly as long.
MGM and the London-based Eon Productions, which is run by Barbara Broccoli, the daughter of Albert “Cubby” Broccoli, the original producer, will make the decision. They have received — or will soon — a pitch from every Hollywood studio, including Sony Pictures, the current rights-holder. It’s not just Bond realities that will be on the table; the winner will almost certainly have to do some horse trading with MGM, which lives by the co-production.
They can all make a case. Twentieth Century Fox is on a roll and for years had a home entertainment alliance with MGM; Paramount and MGM co-produced this summer’s “Ben-Hur” remake, they’re home entertainment partners and the studio and Viacom chairman Philippe Dauman could use a big play to ignite a comeback.
Lionsgate needs an anchor franchise to replace “The Hunger Games” and has significant Chinese investment backing; Universal proved its prowess globally with three $1 billion-grossing films last year and Disney has gobbled up nearly every other major film property available over the past decade.
There’s no guarantee the assignment will change hands, since Sony did a great job with “Spectre” and the top-grossing 007 film “Skyfall,” but few see that as enough to seal a deal.
Warner Bros. was at one point seen by some as a front-runner due to its history of handling high-profile franchises, including the “Lord of the Rings” and “Harry Potter” films, and the friendship between MGM chairman and chief executive Gary Barber and Kevin Tsujihara, who holds a similar post at WB.
But the time the talks have extended suggest otherwise, and as one studio executive put it, “no one is going to make a billion-dollar decision based on who their barbecue buddies are.”
Actually, $5 billion is more like it, if you are talking the worldwide grosses of Hollywood’s longest-running film franchise, and “Spectre” has taken in nearly $800 million globally.
The next entry, the 25th in the series, will likely again star Daniel Craig, despite his remarks to the contrary. Whether he’s in or out will likely not hurt Bond at the box office; the franchise has survived and thrived through eight of them: Barry Nelson, David Niven, Sean Connery, George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan and Craig.
James Bond: 50 Years of 007's Women (Photos)
Eva Green's enigmatic Vesper Lynd broke down Bond's defenses (and the audience's) as the woman whose death in "Casino Royale" (2006) sets him off on a revenge-soaked mission.
Diana Rigg was Bond's equal in "On Her Majesty's Secret Service" (1968). Her fiery Countess Tracy di Vicenzo even did the impossible, convincing the skirt-chasing 007 to tie the knot ... only to die in his arms moments after he made an honest woman of her.
Ursula Andress set the gold standard for Bond women thanks to her eye-catching performance as Honey Rider in "Dr. No" (1962). Emerging from the ocean in a barely-there bikini, Andress and the spy series helped launch a greater era of sexual permissiveness in movies. She's the original Bond girl, and nothing beats the original.
Has there ever been a more ludicrous villain name than Xenia Onatopp? In "Goldeneye" (1995), the femme fatale crushes her victims while in flagrante delicto. As the deadly diva, Famke Janssen goes over the top with relish.
"Tomorrow Never Dies," with its plodding BMW product placements and goofy plot about a media baron hell-bent on world domination, is one of the worst Bond movies. Paradoxically, it boasts one of the best Bond girls in Michelle Yeoh. Her Chinese spy catches Pierce Brosnan's eye thanks to her mixture of brains and brawn.
Like Yeoh, Halle Berry is a Bond girl for the 21st century in "Die Another Day" (2002). Her NSA agent Jinx is every bit 007's match when it comes to taking down bad guys or tossing back mojitos. Her skin-tight bathing suit is a throwback to Andress and an early age of brain-dead sex bunnies, but Jinx is nobody's plaything.
With a creaky plot that relies on voodoo and Caribbean drug lords, "Live and Let Die" (1973) is a borderline racist curiosity. But as Solitaire, a card-reading psychic, a youthful Jane Seymour has never been more beautiful or beguiling. Is it any wonder it made her a star? To think, we have James Bond to thank for "Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman."
Honor Blackman's literal roll in the hay with Sean Connery in "Goldfinger" (1964), is one of the most iconic moments in any Bond film. Her character's name, Pussy Galore, may cause any self-respecting feminist to break out in hives, but Blackman brought fire and danger to a role that could have just been eye candy, making her a Bond girl for the ages.
More villain than vixen, the towering Grace Jones was one of the most distinctive Bond women in franchise history. Watching her character May Day knock the starch out of 007's collar was the highlight of the otherwise dreary "A View to a Kill" (1985).
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Eva Green's enigmatic Vesper Lynd broke down Bond's defenses (and the audience's) as the woman whose death in "Casino Royale" (2006) sets him off on a revenge-soaked mission.
