Many of us got used to the United Artists logo appearing before the famous Bond fanfare, as it opened (and continues to open, on video) the first 18 official 007 adventures. Even after MGM merged with the company in 1981, the UA logo still would introduce the Bond flicks all the way through TOMORROW NEVER DIES. After MGM released THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH and DIE ANOTHER DAY solo, their financial situation had become such that they had to partner with Sony to release the four (to date) Daniel Craig Bonds.
However, those rights expire after SPECTRE, and word is that Warner Bros. is probably the one with the best chance of scooping them up.
While MGM has partnered with Sony on a great number of projects over the past few years, the biggest hits they’ve been involved in, by a wide margin, have been the HOBBIT movies, which Warner (thanks to their ownership of New Line) was in charge of distributing. The two studios also have a few co-productions on the docket, like CREED and BARBERSHOP 3, and apparently MGM and WB’s head honchos (Gary Barber and Kevin Tsujihara, respectively) are quite chummy. Add to that the not-at-all-widely-reported personnel shakeup at Sony that may have left MGM a bit cool (even if Amy Pascal had her own particular thoughts on where the Bond franchise should go), and it makes sense that after SPECTRE, the next studio logo we’ll see before getting shot in the eye by James’ Walther will likely be Warner’s everlasting shield.
And with Warner’s rep for not fiddling and letting the creatives do their thing, that sounds like good news, no?
SPECTRE will show you its true colors on November 6th.
