Could Mickey Mouse be the new M for James Bond?
It’s being rumored that Disney might be interested in buying trouble MGM, the studio home of the James Bond 007 movies.
If true, this shouldn’t surprise anyone. Disney is trying to get its hands on as much content as possible to shore up its offering as it competes with Netflix head to head. And is MGM is for sale, with a reported asking price of around $5.5. billion.
The studio is home to such classic franchises as 007, Rocky, The Hobbit, Bill & Ted and more. Once a crown jewel of Hollywood, MGM has hit hard times lately. And the pandemic has only hastened its demise.
The rumor of Disney being interested seemingly originated from pop culture reporter Daniel Richtman. The move would make sense for Disney, ad $5 billion is a lot cheaper than the $70 billion Disney paid for Fox.
From We’ve Got This Covered…
It was reported late last year that the studio had hired advisors to explore potential avenues for selling up, so it wouldn’t be a surprise to find Disney at the head of that queue. MGM haven’t been regarded as a major force in Hollywood for a long time, with James Bond their only lucrative cash cow, but the company’s film and television assets were still valued at over $5 billion when news first broke of a potential sale. And with over 4000 titles in the back catalogue including plenty of all-time classics and some big shows, it would certainly be another valuable addition to the unstoppable Disney empire should it happen.
Does Disney have that kind of cash right now? If it’s being invested intro streaming, they can certainly find it. The Mouse House is pinning its future on Disney+ and Hulu going forward, and the MGM library would be a nice addition.
MGM also produces popular TV series like Vikings and Shark Tank.
MGM was also the home of The Wizard of Oz, a classic among classic.
Too bad Disney already shut down The Great Movie Ride. The acquisition would’ve probably given them the rights to a lot of classic movies they could’ve used.
[Source: We’ve Got This Covered]
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