I really hope DC returning is true. An official announcement is long overdue IMO. It would be great if filming started late this year for a 2018 release, but am I dreaming there?
“We have been escorting a team from Eon Productions (the British film production company known for producing the Bond films) along with Neil and Rob across the island,” commented Antonis Chadjipieris – who works for Orange Grove Video Productions in Cyprus, the company commissioned to help with location scouting on the island.
I did a quick google search on both "Antonis Chadjipieris" and "Orange Grove Video Productions", and the only match I got for either name was that article.
It's also not that easy to get permission to film in Cyprus.
April Fool's prank?
"Antonis Chadjipieris" corrects on Google to without the C and leads to the owner of a Cypriot dairy food company.
Maybe we are reading too much into it, but on his tweet he asks " eh who is this brother? " the answer is of course a brother from Langley
I'm hopeful. I had hoped Leiter would be back in sp after being missing from sf but sadly jw wasn't on mendes wish list
I hope he is in the next film. Just reading whatever I want into this picture... is he asking who is this brother because he sees a Bond that isn't DC?
LOS ANGELES — A five-studio tug of war has broken out over James Bond.
For more than a decade, starting with “Casino Royale” in 2006, the superspy series has been based at Sony Pictures Entertainment. It has been a period of stability and prosperity for 007, as global ticket sales reached new heights. The four Bond films that Sony has released collected $3.5 billion at the worldwide box office, after adjusting for inflation.
But Sony’s contract to market and distribute the films expired in 2015 with “Spectre.” So the two companies that control the franchise but do not distribute their own films — Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and the family-run Eon Productions — have started attending dog and pony shows put on by studios that want the rights, according to five people briefed on the sessions, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations.
On Tuesday, for instance, leaders at Sony spent an hour making their case. Kazuo Hirai, the chief executive, helped give the pitch, which emphasized the studio’s deep knowledge of Bond and its ideas for expanding the franchise’s reach. In true Hollywood fashion, Sony gave its presentation inside a sound stage on a recreated set from “Dr. No,” which was released in the United States in 1963 by United Artists and laid the foundation for the entire series.
Also vying for the Bond deal — even though it pays surprisingly little — are Warner Bros., Universal Pictures, 20th Century Fox and Annapurna, an ambitious upstart financed and led by the Oracle heiress Megan Ellison. (Not competing for the business are Paramount, which has been struggling and recently hired a new chairman, and Walt Disney Studios, which has been on a box office hot streak by focusing on its own family film labels.)
MGM and Eon, which stands for Everything or Nothing, are only offering a one-film contract. The expired Sony deal was for four movies. MGM, which is owned by private equity firms, including Anchorage Capital Partners, probably wants to keep its options open as it considers a sale or public offering.
Casting for the franchise has not been discussed in the meetings, according to the people briefed on them, although producers hope Daniel Craig will play the lead for at least one more chapter. He has a gap on his docket, according to movie industry databases, that would allow for filming.
Representatives for MGM, Eon and the studios pursuing the rights either had no comment or did not return calls.
The eagerness to land Bond underscores the continuing strength of the series but also the realities of the modern movie business. As competition for leisure time increases, studios have focused more intently on global blockbusters, and those are in short supply. In some ways, the Bond series was the first to go after a worldwide audience.
Yet the deal that studios are hotly chasing is not very profitable.
Under its previous agreement, Sony paid 50 percent of the production costs for “Spectre” — which totaled some $250 million after accounting for government incentives — but only received 25 percent of certain profits, once costs were recouped. Sony also shouldered tens of millions of dollars in marketing and had to give MGM a piece of the profit from non-Bond films Sony had in its own pipeline, including “22 Jump Street.”
In a 2014 email stolen by hackers and widely published online, Andrew Gumpert, who then oversaw business affairs for Sony, figured that the studio would realize about $38 million in profit if “Spectre” performed as “Skyfall” did. And “Spectre” did not, taking in $881 million, about 20 percent less than “Skyfall,” which was released in 2012.
Why, then, do studios want to distribute Bond so badly? Bragging rights, mostly. Having a Bond movie on the schedule guarantees at least one hit in a business where there is almost no sure thing.
Bond is gargantuan: The 25 movies have taken in nearly $6 billion at the North American box office, after adjusting for inflation, according to Box Office Mojo. The series has generated billions more in overseas ticket sales, home entertainment revenue, television reruns, marketing partnerships (Omega watches, Aston Martin cars, Gillette razors) and video games.
For at least one suitor, Annapurna, landing Bond would be transformative. Ms. Ellison started by focusing on prestige films like “Her” and “American Hustle.” But she has been diversifying toward more commercial movies like the animated hit “Sausage Party” and recently hired a senior 20th Century Fox executive to oversee production. Last month, Annapurna signed an unrelated distribution deal with MGM.
The person Ms. Ellison and the other bidders need to impress the most is Barbara Broccoli, who runs Eon Productions. Moviemaking is a collaborative process, but Ms. Broccoli and her older half brother, Michael G. Wilson, have final say over every line of dialogue, casting decision, stunt sequence, marketing tie-in, TV ad, poster and billboard.
Dont wait for your ship to come in. Swim out and meet the bloody thing.
LOS ANGELES — A five-studio tug of war has broken out over James Bond.
For more than a decade, starting with “Casino Royale” in 2006, the superspy series has been based at Sony Pictures Entertainment. It has been a period of stability and prosperity for 007, as global ticket sales reached new heights. The four Bond films that Sony has released collected $3.5 billion at the worldwide box office, after adjusting for inflation.
But Sony’s contract to market and distribute the films expired in 2015 with “Spectre.” So the two companies that control the franchise but do not distribute their own films — Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and the family-run Eon Productions — have started attending dog and pony shows put on by studios that want the rights, according to five people briefed on the sessions, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations.
On Tuesday, for instance, leaders at Sony spent an hour making their case. Kazuo Hirai, the chief executive, helped give the pitch, which emphasized the studio’s deep knowledge of Bond and its ideas for expanding the franchise’s reach. In true Hollywood fashion, Sony gave its presentation inside a sound stage on a recreated set from “Dr. No,” which was released in the United States in 1963 by United Artists and laid the foundation for the entire series.
Also vying for the Bond deal — even though it pays surprisingly little — are Warner Bros., Universal Pictures, 20th Century Fox and Annapurna, an ambitious upstart financed and led by the Oracle heiress Megan Ellison. (Not competing for the business are Paramount, which has been struggling and recently hired a new chairman, and Walt Disney Studios, which has been on a box office hot streak by focusing on its own family film labels.)
MGM and Eon, which stands for Everything or Nothing, are only offering a one-film contract. The expired Sony deal was for four movies. MGM, which is owned by private equity firms, including Anchorage Capital Partners, probably wants to keep its options open as it considers a sale or public offering.
Casting for the franchise has not been discussed in the meetings, according to the people briefed on them, although producers hope Daniel Craig will play the lead for at least one more chapter. He has a gap on his docket, according to movie industry databases, that would allow for filming.
Representatives for MGM, Eon and the studios pursuing the rights either had no comment or did not return calls.
The eagerness to land Bond underscores the continuing strength of the series but also the realities of the modern movie business. As competition for leisure time increases, studios have focused more intently on global blockbusters, and those are in short supply. In some ways, the Bond series was the first to go after a worldwide audience.
Yet the deal that studios are hotly chasing is not very profitable.
Under its previous agreement, Sony paid 50 percent of the production costs for “Spectre” — which totaled some $250 million after accounting for government incentives — but only received 25 percent of certain profits, once costs were recouped. Sony also shouldered tens of millions of dollars in marketing and had to give MGM a piece of the profit from non-Bond films Sony had in its own pipeline, including “22 Jump Street.”
In a 2014 email stolen by hackers and widely published online, Andrew Gumpert, who then oversaw business affairs for Sony, figured that the studio would realize about $38 million in profit if “Spectre” performed as “Skyfall” did. And “Spectre” did not, taking in $881 million, about 20 percent less than “Skyfall,” which was released in 2012.
Why, then, do studios want to distribute Bond so badly? Bragging rights, mostly. Having a Bond movie on the schedule guarantees at least one hit in a business where there is almost no sure thing.
Bond is gargantuan: The 25 movies have taken in nearly $6 billion at the North American box office, after adjusting for inflation, according to Box Office Mojo. The series has generated billions more in overseas ticket sales, home entertainment revenue, television reruns, marketing partnerships (Omega watches, Aston Martin cars, Gillette razors) and video games.
For at least one suitor, Annapurna, landing Bond would be transformative. Ms. Ellison started by focusing on prestige films like “Her” and “American Hustle.” But she has been diversifying toward more commercial movies like the animated hit “Sausage Party” and recently hired a senior 20th Century Fox executive to oversee production. Last month, Annapurna signed an unrelated distribution deal with MGM.
The person Ms. Ellison and the other bidders need to impress the most is Barbara Broccoli, who runs Eon Productions. Moviemaking is a collaborative process, but Ms. Broccoli and her older half brother, Michael G. Wilson, have final say over every line of dialogue, casting decision, stunt sequence, marketing tie-in, TV ad, poster and billboard.
The fact that MGM and EON are only discussing a deal for a single picture adds weight to my belief that Craig is coming back for one more. If the role were being recast, the producers wouldn't want the uncertainty of having to go back into the marketplace so soon. They'd want financial assurances and time to correct course if the new Bond iunderperforms in his first outing.
The fact that MGM and EON are only discussing a deal for a single picture adds weight to my belief that Craig is coming back for one more. If the role were being recast, the producers wouldn't want the uncertainty of having to go back into the marketplace so soon. They'd want financial assurances and time to correct course if the new Bond iunderperforms in his first outing.
I think this all lends credence to Craig returning, although I'm sure that's still tied to some combination of (1) his payday, and (2) the quality of the script. And the payday might depend on the distribution deal.
Oh my.....real news from a credible source. Things appear to be heating up. I agree the one picture deal would lend credence to the return of Craig for Bond 25. Only a couple of weeks left for my strictly gut based prediction of an April official announcement for Bond 25.
Things are heating up a bit, but we still only have scraps to mull over and decipher
It's definitely not much, but at least it indicates that something if finally happening. I don't think we'll hear anything about casting, director, or release dates until this distribution matter is resolved. I'm not knowledgeable of the film industry, but from my own experience, these types of negotiations usually don't play out quickly, and it sounds like they're at an early stage.
Things are heating up a bit, but we still only have scraps to mull over and decipher
It's definitely not much, but at least it indicates that something if finally happening. I don't think we'll hear anything about casting, director, or release dates until this distribution matter is resolved. I'm not knowledgeable of the film industry, but from my own experience, these types of negotiations usually don't play out quickly, and it sounds like they're at an early stage.
I suspect you're right, but I do think post production and planning are in quite an advanced stage.
I think this all lends credence to Craig returning, although I'm sure that's still tied to some combination of (1) his payday, and (2) the quality of the script. And the payday might depend on the distribution deal.
To point 2, a WGA strike is a very real possibility, and whether that results in a delay or in a rushed script, either of those things will, I suspect, result in Craig walking away.
Comments
You only got away with that coz Sir Miles is away...otherwise you'd either be banned or on your way to Guantanamo!
I wouldn't mention it to him.
1 - Moore, 2 - Dalton, 3 - Craig, 4 - Connery, 5 - Brosnan, 6 - Lazenby
April Fool's prank?
"Antonis Chadjipieris" corrects on Google to without the C and leads to the owner of a Cypriot dairy food company.
http://www.hadjipieris.com/
I sure hope this means we'll be seeing Wright's Leiter again!
I hope so too. Although I wonder how much we can realistically read into that given how tight-lipped everyone is being.
I'm hopeful. I had hoped Leiter would be back in sp after being missing from sf but sadly jw wasn't on mendes wish list
https://www.instagram.com/p/BSrtz2vAdf2/
I'm not seeing any hints, just fond memories.
I hope he is in the next film. Just reading whatever I want into this picture... is he asking who is this brother because he sees a Bond that isn't DC?
Hmmmmmm.
LOS ANGELES — A five-studio tug of war has broken out over James Bond.
For more than a decade, starting with “Casino Royale” in 2006, the superspy series has been based at Sony Pictures Entertainment. It has been a period of stability and prosperity for 007, as global ticket sales reached new heights. The four Bond films that Sony has released collected $3.5 billion at the worldwide box office, after adjusting for inflation.
But Sony’s contract to market and distribute the films expired in 2015 with “Spectre.” So the two companies that control the franchise but do not distribute their own films — Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and the family-run Eon Productions — have started attending dog and pony shows put on by studios that want the rights, according to five people briefed on the sessions, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations.
On Tuesday, for instance, leaders at Sony spent an hour making their case. Kazuo Hirai, the chief executive, helped give the pitch, which emphasized the studio’s deep knowledge of Bond and its ideas for expanding the franchise’s reach. In true Hollywood fashion, Sony gave its presentation inside a sound stage on a recreated set from “Dr. No,” which was released in the United States in 1963 by United Artists and laid the foundation for the entire series.
Also vying for the Bond deal — even though it pays surprisingly little — are Warner Bros., Universal Pictures, 20th Century Fox and Annapurna, an ambitious upstart financed and led by the Oracle heiress Megan Ellison. (Not competing for the business are Paramount, which has been struggling and recently hired a new chairman, and Walt Disney Studios, which has been on a box office hot streak by focusing on its own family film labels.)
MGM and Eon, which stands for Everything or Nothing, are only offering a one-film contract. The expired Sony deal was for four movies. MGM, which is owned by private equity firms, including Anchorage Capital Partners, probably wants to keep its options open as it considers a sale or public offering.
Casting for the franchise has not been discussed in the meetings, according to the people briefed on them, although producers hope Daniel Craig will play the lead for at least one more chapter. He has a gap on his docket, according to movie industry databases, that would allow for filming.
Representatives for MGM, Eon and the studios pursuing the rights either had no comment or did not return calls.
The eagerness to land Bond underscores the continuing strength of the series but also the realities of the modern movie business. As competition for leisure time increases, studios have focused more intently on global blockbusters, and those are in short supply. In some ways, the Bond series was the first to go after a worldwide audience.
Yet the deal that studios are hotly chasing is not very profitable.
Under its previous agreement, Sony paid 50 percent of the production costs for “Spectre” — which totaled some $250 million after accounting for government incentives — but only received 25 percent of certain profits, once costs were recouped. Sony also shouldered tens of millions of dollars in marketing and had to give MGM a piece of the profit from non-Bond films Sony had in its own pipeline, including “22 Jump Street.”
In a 2014 email stolen by hackers and widely published online, Andrew Gumpert, who then oversaw business affairs for Sony, figured that the studio would realize about $38 million in profit if “Spectre” performed as “Skyfall” did. And “Spectre” did not, taking in $881 million, about 20 percent less than “Skyfall,” which was released in 2012.
Why, then, do studios want to distribute Bond so badly? Bragging rights, mostly. Having a Bond movie on the schedule guarantees at least one hit in a business where there is almost no sure thing.
Bond is gargantuan: The 25 movies have taken in nearly $6 billion at the North American box office, after adjusting for inflation, according to Box Office Mojo. The series has generated billions more in overseas ticket sales, home entertainment revenue, television reruns, marketing partnerships (Omega watches, Aston Martin cars, Gillette razors) and video games.
For at least one suitor, Annapurna, landing Bond would be transformative. Ms. Ellison started by focusing on prestige films like “Her” and “American Hustle.” But she has been diversifying toward more commercial movies like the animated hit “Sausage Party” and recently hired a senior 20th Century Fox executive to oversee production. Last month, Annapurna signed an unrelated distribution deal with MGM.
The person Ms. Ellison and the other bidders need to impress the most is Barbara Broccoli, who runs Eon Productions. Moviemaking is a collaborative process, but Ms. Broccoli and her older half brother, Michael G. Wilson, have final say over every line of dialogue, casting decision, stunt sequence, marketing tie-in, TV ad, poster and billboard.
I thought the same thing.
It's definitely not much, but at least it indicates that something if finally happening. I don't think we'll hear anything about casting, director, or release dates until this distribution matter is resolved. I'm not knowledgeable of the film industry, but from my own experience, these types of negotiations usually don't play out quickly, and it sounds like they're at an early stage.
To point 2, a WGA strike is a very real possibility, and whether that results in a delay or in a rushed script, either of those things will, I suspect, result in Craig walking away.