Will Amazon transform James Bond into a franchise as wrung as Marvel or Star Wars?

Will James Bond lose his soul as Star Wars With Disney? The most charismatic takeover of spies by Amazon worries the subjects of His Majesty, some of which wonder if 007 still has a future. After months of a hidden war between the historic producers of the films and Amazon abundantly relayed by the press, the ax fell on Thursday: the American giant will now preside the destinies of the most famous spy in the world.

And he will do it as he pleases, the Broccoli family – the beneficiaries – having gave him creative control. What raise questions in the homeland of 007: the day after the agreement, The Independent wondered if by taking power over the franchise, Amazon had not “Buried”. For the Times and the TelegraphJames Bond will not be “Never again” the same.

The fact remains that the precise intentions of Amazon for the franchise were not revealed. “What is certain is that they will want a return on investment”underlines with AFP Chloe Preece, marketing teacher at the ESCP business school. “And to be able to amortize the money spent, they will use excessive franchise by creating series (spin-off, prequel ..) and derivative products”she advances.

Jeff Bezos’ group bought the legendary MGM studio in 2022 for $ 8.45 billion (more than 8 billion euros) but the Broccoli family kept exclusive control over the brand. According to the TimesAmazon would have spent a billion dollars again to definitively have frank cubits. “There will be a change in volume”completes Tom Harrington, who works at Enders Analysis, the main British study and media and telecoms advice. So far the Broccoli family had a very « exclusive » of the brand. If merchandising was allowed, he remained limited, he underlines with AFP.

“It is very likely that Amazon will want to create a galaxy around the brand, a bit like Marvel or Star Wars »decrypts with AFP the expert in marketing Adrian Mediavilla. To do this, you will have to draw from secondary characters, develop new frames. But “The material is there”says Chloe Preece. And fans too. “There is an appetite around the brand, the public is desperately waiting for the next film”she continues. The last, Dying can waitdates back to 2021.

Un James Bond « woke » ?

But there is a risk: the overexploitation of the franchise. Ultimately it could weaken it. Above all, it will be necessary “Stay faithful to the heritage of the brand” Around the character imagined seven decades ago by Ian Fleming, underlines Adrian Mediavilla. “The broccoli have always been very careful. They have always worked with a very tight team who knew the character on their fingertips and chose the director themselves ”underlines Chloe Preece. However, like its competitors Netflix or Disney, the Amazon platform works with an armada of writers who, inevitably, come and go. For others, the danger is elsewhere. British tabloids are worried that James Bond becomes « woke ».

“If you watch the evolution of films we can almost say that the latter are” woke “”nuance Chloe Preece, for whom the character of Bond embodied by Daniel Craig has almost nothing to do with that interpreted by Sean Connery or Roger Moore. The writers have erased its goujat side and its condescending spikes towards women, to offer in the last films the image of a slightly more sensitive man. But the big losers could be the cinemas. All the films in the saga are huge blockbusters. But Amazon could now do without an outing in theaters and offer the film directly on Prime, its platform.