James Bond’s New Boss

PRESENTED BY FIVE

It’s Friday, Future Party. The times, they are a-changin’ in America. Case in point: after 35 years, Major League Baseball is ending its broadcast deal with ESPN. The cable channel’s hosting of America’s favorite pastime seemed rock solid… but both the league and the Disney-owned sports brand wanted to see what a separation looked like on the open market. Hey, Netflix, here’s your chance to get in the big leagues.

EON Productions, the production company that’s guided every aspect of the James Bond franchise for decades, is handing creative control over to Amazon MGM Studios… for a price.

The Big Picture: Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli, the heads of EON and the children of original Bond producer Albert “Cubby” Broccoli, have ruled Bond with an iron fist — which has kept the franchise a critical darling but stopped it from expanding beyond its marquee film franchise. With Amazon (hungry to milk the IP from its $8.5 billion acquisition of MGM, which passively owned 50% of Bond) now leading the charge, 007 will have a new mission — infiltrate the entire studio flywheel. 

Behind the Scenes: Despite endless speculation over Wilson and Broccoli’s next 007, Daniel Craig is officially the last Bond of the EON era.

Closing Credits: The 007 news has sent shockwaves through Hollywood, but insiders noted that the relationship between Amazon and EON has been strained from the start, since the former wanted to exploit the IP quickly, and the latter historically took its time to get its movies right. One of the parties was going to have to give in eventually… and it turned out to be EON.

Amazon now has a lot of work ahead of it, starting with appointing the right exec to handle the franchise, akin to Marvel’s Kevin Feige or DC’s James Gunn and Peter Safran. Amazon already has some great options internally, so expect that to be the biggest turf war at the studio.

Looking for a low-key way to unwind without all the smoke?

Try these Delta-9 THC gummies from Five.

They’re vegan, all-natural, and the perfect way to take the edge off without any fuss. Each vegan gummy has 10mg of THC, giving you a pleasant little vibe for hanging out with friends or relaxing after a long day.

With 1,000,000+ happy customers, it’s a no-brainer. And right now, you can snag a pack for just the cost of shipping.

Get Yours Today

Rockstar Games is exploring turning its bestselling Grand Theft Auto franchise into a metaverse platform with the upcoming GTA 6, paving the way for user-generated content (UGC) creators to develop the video game.

Why It Hits: Fortnite, Roblox, and Minecraft are some of the biggest names in gaming today, thanks to their ability to be endlessly built on by players. But there’s nothing really comparable to those titles strictly in the adult-oriented space, which GTA could easily conquer.

Between the Levels: There are a lot of aspects of GTA that are customizable… but Rockstar now wants to make the game itself customizable, too.

Final Boss: It’s uncertain exactly how creators would make money on the platform — it could be the sale of virtual items (plenty of opportunities there), revenue share programs, or even the subscription fees that creators on FiveM already charge (which have been a major moneymaker for some). No matter what, though, there will be a huge audience for the metaverse extension — it’s already the most-watched game on Twitch. 

With GTA 6 rumored to cost $2 billion (making it the most expensive game ever), Rockstar is likely looking for any possible way to recoup the budget and make money for years to come.

Two processors. Zero compromises.

While ordinary hearing aids struggle, Horizon IX intelligently separates speech from noise, delivering sound so pure it feels like your younger ears are back.

Virtually invisible and endorsed by 425,000+ users…

Find out if you qualify for their game-changing, 45-day trial now.

Try Now

67.3% of you voted Shuttle service in yesterday’s poll: Would you rather order a shuttle service like Fetii or a party bus for group transpo?

“At least worth a try to see how it works out.”

“This is perfect for groups going out to a single destination.”

“Uber and Lyft killed off taxis for a reason.”

“Party bus, baby! With a disco ball swinging from above.”

Let’s keep the conversation going. Join our Poll Of The Day newsletter, so your opinions can shine. Discover how your views line up with your peers’, check out cool insights, and have some fun. It’s data with personality.

🎮 Xbox is betting that generative AI within gameplay can level up players’ experiences.

🎞️ China’s Ne Zha 2 is the first movie to make a billion dollars in the country alone.

🎥 Netflix has pledged a billion dollars of its content budget annually to Mexican films and shows.

🦾 Humanoid-robotics startup Figure showed off how you can now audibly tell its robots what to do… and they will listen.

🚚 Hydrogen-fuel truck startup Nikola has crashed into bankruptcy a couple of years after being convicted of securities fraud.

💸 X is raising a fresh round of funding at $44 billion… despite Wall Street not valuing the company at that price.

📱 Meta really wants kids back on FB and is consulting with MrBeast and Mark Rober on how to accomplish that.

💻 Twitch is going to start deleting your saved videos… if you have more than 100 hours banked.

🤳 Advertisers can now pay for influencers to share positive testimonials of their products in the comments on Insta.