Does Barbara Broccoli own James Bond?

Barbara Broccoli CBE is an American film and stage producer.  Barbara Broccoli and her brother Michael G. Wilson own EON Productions Limited which is the UK based production company that makes the James Bond films.

Barbara’s father Albert and a partner named Henry Saltzman struck the deal of a lifetime a year after she was born: they purchased the rights to adapt Ian Fleming’s James Bond novels into films.

Albert later struck a deal with MGM, giving the studio exclusive first rights to Bond films. Henry Saltzman sold his rights to MGM in the mid-1970s.

As a result of the agreement, MGM and the Broccoli family shared 50/50 ownership of James Bond. That arrangement is still in effect today.

Barbara and her half-brother Michael G. Wilson inherited the franchise after Albert died.

Albert told Barbara and Michael before he died: “We’ve found the golden egg. Don’t let anyone else mess it up.”

Barbara is now one of the most successful female producers in the entertainment industry.