Amazon Studios recently acquired MGM Studios in an $8.5 billion deal, bringing in a plethora of major established franchises and further anticipated movies and TV shows. Amazon Studios has given its bid for streaming notoriety against Netflix with successful original shows like The Underground Railroad, Jack Ryan, and Invincible as well as Oscar-nominated movies like Sound of Metal and Manchester by the Sea. With Amazon acquiring the vast vault of movies and shows from the classic Hollywood studio MGM, the service’s enticement for drawing in more streamers will increase substantially.
The big Amazon deal is occurring at a time where alternate streaming services are also engaged in media consolidation, minimizing the variety of streaming service choices and competition. According to NBC, Amazon’s purchase of MGM was about $3 billion over reported value, suggesting the company has strategic plans with its new catalog of films and series to bring in more subscribers. The deal apparently cost more than Disney paid to acquire both mega-franchises of both Marvel and Star Wars.
The acquisition may also cause a few issues among other streaming services like Hulu and HBO Max that already hold contracts for some of the films and series in Amazon’s new catalog. While Amazon is bringing in a century’s worth of high-value intellectual property, some of its bankable classic film series already have a home on HBO Max through Turner Classic Movies. Along with the James Bond, Rocky, and Poltergeist franchises, Amazon will now have studio ownership of new Ridley Scott and Paul Thomas Anderson-directed movies. Here’s a list of all the upcoming movies and TV shows Amazon will now own from MGM.
No Time To Die
The highly anticipated 25th James Bond installment, No Time To Die, will see Daniel Craig return as Bond for the fifth time in October 2021. Amazon will have exclusive North American, digital, and television distribution rights to the film, though it’s unclear when it will be released on the streaming platform considering Universal has international and physical home media rights. Since the acquisition is coming only a few months before No Time To Die’s theatrical release and a few years after production was up and running, the deal likely won’t affect its theatrical release or mean a sooner availability on Amazon Prime.
Creed III
Amazon’s new ownership of the Rocky franchise will allow it to also take control over its auxiliary Creed films. The Creed movies follow Adonis Creed (Michael B. Jordan), son of Rocky Balboa’s former rival and deceased friend, boxer Apollo Creed. Creed 3 is not set to feature the return of Sylvester Stallone, though Amazon may try to convince Sly to come back as a way to bring in more audience members for one of its first new film acquisitions. The movie hasn’t begun production and there are no plot details yet, but it is scheduled to be theatrically released in November 2022.
Legally Blonde 3
The third installment of the beloved Legally Blonde comedy film series will be released in May 2022. The franchise follows Elle Woods (Reese Witherspoon), who in the first film is a fashion-obsessed seemingly clueless sorority girl who gets into Harvard Law School and defies blonde-girl stereotypes by winning her first high-profile murder case. Legally Blonde 2 was a box office success but is ultimately regarded as a critical failure, not living up to the originality of the 2001 movie. Witherspoon will return as Woods in Legally Blonde 3 with a script written by The Office’s Mindy Kaling.
Snake Eyes
The new G.I. Joe film Snake Eyes will be released in July 2021 with Henry Golding starring in the titular character's origin story. While the film is produced by MGM and will eventually be included in Amazon’s catalog of G.I. Joe content, Paramount owns the initial streaming and distribution rights. Paramount+ will likely include Snake Eyes on its streaming service 45 days after its theatrical release, so it’s unknown if and when Amazon would have streaming rights. A follow-up movie with production by MGM is already in development, so a new deal for the upcoming movie will likely be struck between Amazon and Paramount depending on Snake Eyes’ success.
House of Gucci
Since MGM has an exclusive deal with director Ridley Scott for his upcoming movies, Amazon will now own the highly anticipated biographic crime film, House of Gucci, about the assassination of fashion mogul Maurizio Gucci. Lady Gaga will star as Patrizia Reggiani, who orchestrated the assassination of her ex-husband, and Adam Driver will portray Gucci. The film will be released in November 2021 with an all-star supporting cast that includes Al Pacino.
Soggy Bottom
Amazon will own the upcoming films of renowned director Paul Thomas Anderson, who already has a few projects lined up. One anticipated film from Anderson is Soggy Bottom, a drama about a 1970s high schooler who becomes an actor, possibly reminiscent of his cult classic Boogie Nights. The movie stars Bradley Cooper, Alana Haim, and Benny Safdie, and is scheduled to be released in November 2021.
Candyman
One of the most exciting upcoming horror films, the supernatural slasher Candyman will be a spiritual sequel to the 1992 film directed by Bernard Rose. Directed by Nia DaCosta and starring Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Candyman will explore the titular villain’s backstory from the perspective of a young Chicago artist. The movie was originally scheduled to be released in June 2020 but has been pushed back to August 2021.
The Handmaid’s Tale
Possibly Amazon Studio’s biggest television acquisition, The Handmaid’s Tale already has its streaming home on Hulu. The series just released its fourth season, and more are expected for the adaption of Margaret Atwood’s dystopian novels. The series follows June Osborn, a woman in a dystopian future where fertile women are turned into biblically-reminiscent “Handmaids” and are forced to bear children for wealthy men with infertile wives. The Handmaid’s Tale’s most recent season received less critical acclaim than its prior installments, though Amazon’s new ownership may attempt to substantially revitalize further seasons.
Another upcoming television series Amazon will now have control over is Wednesday, Tim Burton's Addams Family reboot revolving around the spooky family's daughter. Two properties produced by MGM Television that may cause issues are Vikings: Valhalla, a historical action drama series, and Willow, an upcoming fantasy show based on the 1988 movie. Vikings: Valhalla is slated to be released on Netflix, and as a property of Lucasfilms, Willow is going on Disney+, though there may be some leeway for Amazon to acquire eventual co-streaming rights.
Current television shows that Amazon will creatively control future seasons of are Fargo, Condor, and Clarice. Ongoing reality series coming to Amazon are Survivor, Shark Tank, and The Voice. Many of these series are exclusively streamed on Hulu, so it’s likely the services will come to a financial agreement that allows the shift of streaming rights to be more gradual. Amazon will also be acquiring the IP for MGM’s classic television shows like Gilligan’s Island, The Pink Panther Show, and Flipper, likely garnering modern reboots and spin-offs.