No Time To Die: Production Diary

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Comments

  • edited March 2018 Posts: 2,115
    //Some people on this forum surprise me. They seem to lack any sense of business acumen.

    Bond 25 is definitely coming in 2019. MGM is a business and it needs to establish revenue.//

    If it was strictly business, Bond 25 would be out in 2018. However, in entertainment there is also the issue of your relationships with talent.

    In this case, both Barbara Broccoli and Daniel Craig wanted to do other things. So MGM (apparently) decided it couldn't pressure either because it would be bad in the long run. Meanwhile, MGM spent much of 2016 pursuing a sale to a Chinese company that never materialized.

    MGM could have used the revenue from a Bond movie this year. As noted above, The Hollywood Reporter and other entertainment sites have noted that MGM's film business is languishing while the TV business is doing well. And the remake of Death Wish and the new Tomb Raider movie aren't doing that well.

    But pressuring either Broccoli or Craig could be bad in the long run. Perhaps that why Barber talked about a 3- to 4-year gap after MGM said back in 2010 (as part of its plan to get out of bankruptcy) that Bond movies would get back to an every-other-year schedule.
  • Mendes4LyfeMendes4Lyfe The long road ahead
    Posts: 7,964
    Exactly. If it was simply a matter of getting a Bond film out as quickly as possible they would have gone with 2017 release. There are other factors here clearly, and a lot of spooky happens lately to do with MGM and EON. We can only hope no more set backs occur, but Bond always gets a spanner in the works somehow.
  • edited March 2018 Posts: 5,767
    New developments:
    https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/gary-barber-why-mgm-ceo-was-fired-1096079
    garybarber_graphic_copy_-_h_2018.jpg

    Supposedly, Eon refused to work with Barber and often clashed with him.

    Some people on this forum surprise me. They seem to lack any sense of business acumen.

    Bond 25 is definitely coming in 2019. MGM is a business and it needs to establish revenue. Bond is a huge source of that revenue. Production decisions can be made by Eon and creative decisions are led by Boyle (if he gets the job). The studio still have the money and the added incentive to deliver in time to please shareholders.

    If anything, next week's shareholders meeting will be a perfect time to pivot away the Barber ousting and announce a Annapurna/Warner Bros deal for Bond & MGM.

    It's business as usual at MGM.
    That article makes it seem reasonable to fire Barber and gives the prospect that if at all the time management regarding Bond 25 will change for the better.




    Sherlock Holmes was an addict on his own, though. Doyle and Hutch were both forced to the habit, which they never actually embodied.
    Fleming´s Bond popping benzedrine here and there isn´t that far from literary Sherlock Holmes shooting himself up from time to time. I don´t think Holmes is depicted as an addict. He uses substances out of boredom, or for scientific research purposes.
  • The Wall Street Journal has weighed in with a story I can't access because it's behind a pay wall. But maybe others here have a Journal subscription.

    https://www.wsj.com/articles/mgm-ceo-gary-barber-was-fired-following-disagreement-with-board-on-strategy-1521651750

    Meanwhile, one of the WSJ reporters, sent out this tweet, quoting from a Broccoli-Wilson statement. It's not quoted in the story.



  • bondjamesbondjames You were expecting someone else?
    edited March 2018 Posts: 23,883
    I'm including the captions from the WSJ article that are new information (the rest is what we've seen already):

    ----
    "Mr. Barber previously had disagreed with some board members over how MGM should make the transition to a combined producer and distributor capable of holding its own against giants such as Netflix Inc. from a pure content-production company, according to people with knowledge of the disagreements."

    "Members of the board believe that Mr. Barber was running the company with an eye toward selling it rather than focusing on long-term growth, a contention with which the chief executive disagreed, according to several of the people close to the company."

    "A question for MGM’s future will be whether it can turn its premium cable channel Epix into a vibrant digital business that competes with Netflix, HBO and other subscription video services. MGM in 2017 gained full ownership of Epix—previously a joint venture withViacom Inc. and Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. —in a deal that valued the channel at around $1 billion. Mr. Barber, whose background is in accounting and film, didn’t appear to have a strategy for Epix that satisfied the board."

    "Driving the firing was a sense among some board members that Mr. Barber wasn’t being aggressive enough in pursuing new partnerships and growth strategies, as he had previously agreed to do, one of the people close to the company said."

    "Mr. Barber, meanwhile, believed he was building shareholder value by executing and then managing acquisitions including Epix and “Survivor” producer Mark Burnett’s production company, another one of the people said. Mr. Barber was working on other potential deals for MGM, this person added."

    "Mr. Barber is known as a frugal business person, an aggressive deal-maker and a hands-on operator, said people who have worked with him. That approach has helped to stabilize the company, but it frustrated some colleagues who wanted more autonomy and investment, including Mr. Burnett, according to people who know them both."

    "The board is now expected to look outside the studio for a new leader, someone who is likely to have a stronger background in digital media and television than Mr. Barber, some of the people close to the company said."
    ----

    My take: If the above is true, then I have concerns about MGM's business strategy. There is a feeling in the investment community that Netflix has run away with the streaming platform and it's a fool's game to try and compete. Even Disney is facing an uphill battle with its nascent streaming offering. So I can't see how little MGM can make the necessary investments to be competitive against that behemoth, let alone Amazon Prime. Quite frankly, I would think that a sale is actually the best option, given the market dynamics and interest in M&A at the present time. The longer Epix is out there stagnating, the more likely they will have to write off a portion of their $1bn acquisition cost.

    EDIT: In other news, MGM quietly hired a partner in a law firm in mid-February to be its COO and to oversea business development and strategic growth initiatives. I wonder if they were setting the stage for Barber's exit with this move.

    http://variety.com/2018/film/news/mgm-new-coo-chris-brearton-1202696375/
  • Thanks, bondjames.
  • 007Blofeld007Blofeld In the freedom of the West.
    Posts: 3,126
    You have to wonder what is really going on behind closed doors between Eon and Mgm things are getting more interesting everyday
  • Posts: 150
    So, no news on the Arnold front after last night's presentation?
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,368
    nikos78 wrote: »
    So, no news on the Arnold front after last night's presentation?

    I suppose since Boyle isn't 100% confirmed yet (they could somehow despise the script and opt to go with P&W's take) that we won't have a composer attached until a director officially is.
  • Goldeneye0094Goldeneye0094 Conyers, GA
    Posts: 464
    I wonder if yann demange is eon's backup if boyle and hodge's script doesn't work out?
  • BMW_with_missilesBMW_with_missiles All the usual refinements.
    edited March 2018 Posts: 3,000
    I wonder if yann demange is eon's backup if boyle and hodge's script doesn't work out?

    I wonder if EON is organized enough that they even have a backup plan.
  • WalecsWalecs On Her Majesty's Secret Service
    Posts: 3,157
    Creasy47 wrote: »
    nikos78 wrote: »
    So, no news on the Arnold front after last night's presentation?

    I suppose since Boyle isn't 100% confirmed yet (they could somehow despise the script and opt to go with P&W's take) that we won't have a composer attached until a director officially is.

    And we most likely won't know until the press conference.
  • Posts: 725
    I think Gregory Beam should return as a slimy CIA head making things worse for Bond.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    edited March 2018 Posts: 40,368
    I think Gregory Beam should return as a slimy CIA head making things worse for Bond.

    I'd love to see that. Though he did get fired at the end of QoS, so maybe he's around in a more villainous way.
  • talos7talos7 New Orleans
    Posts: 7,888
    I wonder if yann demange is eon's backup if boyle and hodge's script doesn't work out?

    I don’t think there is any chance the script doesn’t “work out”
    The’ve chosen the horse they’re riding to the finish line; let’s hope it’s a thoroughbred.
  • Posts: 1,407
    Boyle has now spoken publicly about it. This is happening barring something unforeseen
  • Posts: 12,242
    bondbat007 wrote: »
    Boyle has now spoken publicly about it. This is happening barring something unforeseen

    Agreed. He wouldn't publicly talk about it if it wasn't a near-certainty.
  • Mendes4LyfeMendes4Lyfe The long road ahead
    Posts: 7,964
    In film business no certainties there are.
  • TripAcesTripAces Universal Exports
    edited March 2018 Posts: 4,548
    New developments:
    https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/gary-barber-why-mgm-ceo-was-fired-1096079
    garybarber_graphic_copy_-_h_2018.jpg

    Supposedly, Eon refused to work with Barber and often clashed with him.

    Some people on this forum surprise me. They seem to lack any sense of business acumen.

    Bond 25 is definitely coming in 2019. MGM is a business and it needs to establish revenue. Bond is a huge source of that revenue. Production decisions can be made by Eon and creative decisions are led by Boyle (if he gets the job). The studio still have the money and the added incentive to deliver in time to please shareholders.

    If anything, next week's shareholders meeting will be a perfect time to pivot away the Barber ousting and announce a Annapurna/Warner Bros deal for Bond & MGM.

    It's business as usual at MGM.

    Could it be that this Hollywoodreporter it's just the Internet equivalent of the Tattler? I am having a hard time to believe that the CEO of a hedge fund of that size is firing a top man of one of its branches just because he supposedly didn't get along well with EON.
    Also, aren't they the outfit that supposedly confirmed the news with Boyle directing? At the risk of repeating myself I don't believe anything of it. Why, you ask? Well I just can't believe that news of that size wouldn't stay unreported by all those other news outfits on the planet. And -surprise,surprise - none of them did. At least those I frequently adhere to. Also, since they are not in the habit to finance their movies themselves I just can't see how they could make that far reaching decisions without even having a new distributor/investor. The way I see it (and I'm sure many will hate me for it ) apart from P&W there's no one signed yet at all.

    The Hollywood Reporter was always THE best place for news and inside scoops on the business. I haven't read it as much in the past few years, but its reporting is generally very solid.
    Creasy47 wrote: »
    I think Gregory Beam should return as a slimy CIA head making things worse for Bond.

    I'd love to see that. Though he did get fired at the end of QoS, so maybe he's around in a more villainous way.

    Given David Harbour's new-found fame, he would be great. In terms of Beam, though, I don't remember him getting fired. The last we saw or heard of him, he was shooing away flies in a Peruvian bar and complaining about the water. Or did I miss something?
  • Posts: 6,682
    TripAces wrote: »
    New developments:
    https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/gary-barber-why-mgm-ceo-was-fired-1096079
    garybarber_graphic_copy_-_h_2018.jpg

    Supposedly, Eon refused to work with Barber and often clashed with him.

    Some people on this forum surprise me. They seem to lack any sense of business acumen.

    Bond 25 is definitely coming in 2019. MGM is a business and it needs to establish revenue. Bond is a huge source of that revenue. Production decisions can be made by Eon and creative decisions are led by Boyle (if he gets the job). The studio still have the money and the added incentive to deliver in time to please shareholders.

    If anything, next week's shareholders meeting will be a perfect time to pivot away the Barber ousting and announce a Annapurna/Warner Bros deal for Bond & MGM.

    It's business as usual at MGM.

    Could it be that this Hollywoodreporter it's just the Internet equivalent of the Tattler? I am having a hard time to believe that the CEO of a hedge fund of that size is firing a top man of one of its branches just because he supposedly didn't get along well with EON.
    Also, aren't they the outfit that supposedly confirmed the news with Boyle directing? At the risk of repeating myself I don't believe anything of it. Why, you ask? Well I just can't believe that news of that size wouldn't stay unreported by all those other news outfits on the planet. And -surprise,surprise - none of them did. At least those I frequently adhere to. Also, since they are not in the habit to finance their movies themselves I just can't see how they could make that far reaching decisions without even having a new distributor/investor. The way I see it (and I'm sure many will hate me for it ) apart from P&W there's no one signed yet at all.

    The Hollywood Reporter was always THE best place for news and inside scoops on the business. I haven't read it as much in the past few years, but its reporting is generally very solid.
    Furthermore, according to THR, Barber isn't just getting fired because of his poor relationship with EON, but because while he "has done a good job of stabilizing the situation financially and getting the place downsized, (...) he is not creative. He's not the guy to take the place to the next level." And "Barber hasn’t actually grown the top or bottom line much in recent years. In 2016, revenue of $1.2 billion was the lowest in five years, while profit of $155.2 million was less than the previous year and only marginally better than in 2014."
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,368
    @TripAces,

    M says to Bond at the end:

    M: "Your friend Leiter's been promoted. He replaced Beam."

    Bond: "Well, then the right people kept their jobs."
  • bondjamesbondjames You were expecting someone else?
    edited March 2018 Posts: 23,883
    Felix was promoted over Beam. I don't think he was necessarily sacked. He just wasn't promoted (or was demoted). His behaviour during the film wasn't a sackable offense, because it's par for the course for the CIA and other Intelligence Services, including those of the UK.
  • TripAcesTripAces Universal Exports
    edited March 2018 Posts: 4,548
    Creasy47 wrote: »
    @TripAces,

    M says to Bond at the end:

    M: "Your friend Leiter's been promoted. He replaced Beam."

    Bond: "Well, then the right people kept their jobs."

    Ah, yes. Thank you @Creasy47. Like @bondjames I didn't take those lines as him getting fired. But I guess one could look at it that way.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,368
    bondjames wrote: »
    Felix was promoted over Beam. I don't think he was necessarily sacked. He just wasn't promoted (or was demoted). His behaviour during the film wasn't a sackable offense, because it's par for the course for the CIA and other Intelligence Services, including those of the UK.

    Either way he was at least demoted and nowhere near as influential as Leiter was. That could've irritated him enough for him to quit the CIA and join the bad guys.
  • ggl007ggl007 www.archivo007.com Spain, España
    Posts: 2,535
    nikos78 wrote: »
    So, no news on the Arnold front after last night's presentation?

    From ajb: "Somebody asked about his involvement and he said it wasn’t up to him in the end, but that he always has a special sharpened pencil for Bond..."
  • bondjamesbondjames You were expecting someone else?
    Posts: 23,883
    Creasy47 wrote: »
    bondjames wrote: »
    Felix was promoted over Beam. I don't think he was necessarily sacked. He just wasn't promoted (or was demoted). His behaviour during the film wasn't a sackable offense, because it's par for the course for the CIA and other Intelligence Services, including those of the UK.

    Either way he was at least demoted and nowhere near as influential as Leiter was. That could've irritated him enough for him to quit the CIA and join the bad guys.
    Possibly, or just stay at the CIA and become a thorn in the side of Bond and Felix in B25. That's what I suggested some months back. Felix gets thrown under the bus, the CIA is in chaos and Beam is the one pulling the strings looking to navigate himself back into good graces.

    It won't happen because Harbour is too big now, unless he's cast as the main villain.
  • Posts: 6,682
    Creasy47 wrote: »
    bondjames wrote: »
    Felix was promoted over Beam. I don't think he was necessarily sacked. He just wasn't promoted (or was demoted). His behaviour during the film wasn't a sackable offense, because it's par for the course for the CIA and other Intelligence Services, including those of the UK.

    Either way he was at least demoted and nowhere near as influential as Leiter was. That could've irritated him enough for him to quit the CIA and join the bad guys.
    Yeah, it's not like if Beam got sacked he would've just vanished from the world of intelligence. He still had information, connections. He could reappear in a different capacity, working for a different organization, or with the bad guys. Could be a recurring role, the villainous counterpart of General Gogol.

    ggl007 wrote: »
    nikos78 wrote: »
    So, no news on the Arnold front after last night's presentation?

    From ajb: "Somebody asked about his involvement and he said it wasn’t up to him in the end, but that he always has a special sharpened pencil for Bond..."
    Good that they asked him, though that answer was all we could expect.
  • bondjamesbondjames You were expecting someone else?
    Posts: 23,883
    I just read that SW9 will begin shooting at Pinewood in early 2019. Indy 5 is planned to start shooting in late spring to summer 2019.

    Where is the time for Bond?
  • Posts: 19,339
    bondjames wrote: »
    I just read that SW9 will begin shooting at Pinewood in early 2019. Indy 5 is planned to start shooting in late spring to summer 2019.

    Where is the time for Bond?

    I think Bond should already be booked for end of 2018/2019 ..if anything then SW9 would be pushed back or an alternative found.

  • bondjamesbondjames You were expecting someone else?
    Posts: 23,883
    barryt007 wrote: »
    bondjames wrote: »
    I just read that SW9 will begin shooting at Pinewood in early 2019. Indy 5 is planned to start shooting in late spring to summer 2019.

    Where is the time for Bond?

    I think Bond should already be booked for end of 2018/2019 ..if anything then SW9 would be pushed back or an alternative found.
    I honestly don't think Disney gets pushed back for anything, not even Bond. They have some kind of pre-existing arrangement with Pinewood.
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