Although many content creators have turned to streaming in recent years, in part because the pandemic has made it difficult to leave theaters, Amazon is ready to act the other. The company already has its own streaming service, Prime Video, available through Amazon Prime. It is also the home of the beloved TV show Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power. But Amazon says it aims to spend $1 billion a year on movies that will be released in theaters instead of online. This information comes from Bloomberg (via Gizmodo). Sources familiar with Amazon’s plans have indicated that the plan includes making 12-15 movies that will hit theaters. That’s how you get a $1 billion budget. By comparison, Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power cost $715 million to make.
Amazon will start next year with a limited schedule of movie releases. It is not known what the first film he plans to do, but if the plan goes well, he could increase the number of films that hit theaters in the coming years.
The giant e-commerce bought MGM in 2021 for up to $ 9 billion. Among other things, the acquisition gives Amazon control of the James Bond franchise, which itself wants to restart. However, it is not known when Amazon will make the next James Bond movie or who will be the new face of 007.
According to Gizmodo, Amazon has confirmed the theatrical release of some movies. He bought The Big Sick ($12 million) in Manchester by the sea ($10 million). These movies have moderately good reviews, but they aren’t huge hits. And Amazon didn’t actually make them.
Amazon’s plan to spend $1 billion on movies every year is going to be a big hit. People haven’t returned to the movies. Bloomberg says that ticket sales in the US are down more than 33% from 2019. It is clear that Amazon will want to see a return on its investment, and that cannot happen if moviegoers prefers to wait for upcoming movies on services like Prime Video.
In addition, it is usually superhero movies from Marvel and Warner Bros. or franchises like Top Gun and Avatar will make the best money at the box office. Of course Amazon can’t afford to make 12-14 James Bond movies a year, so it would be interesting to see what kind of movie the big man is cooking up for the big screen.
