Cinema Chat: 05/27/21 SINGIN IN THE RAIN AND THE WIZARD OF OZ ARE NOT PART OF THE AMAZON DEAL
Here’s why MGM has a long history of mergers and acquisitions revolving around its library.
With its $8.45 billion deal to buy MGM, Amazon will stock Prime Video with the studio’s cache of 4,000 movies and 17,000 hours of television. It’s a huge library, but notably absent are some of MGM’s most iconic films, including “The Wizard of Oz,” and “Singin’ in the Rain. Those titles and all other MGM movies made before 1986 belong to WarnerMedia.
In 1986, Ted Turner made a series of deals that resulted in Turner Broadcasting taking ownership of all prior MGM films. Not unlike Amazon, he wanted the films for programming his growing cable empire and the library became one of the pillars that built Turner Classic Movies. Today, WarnerMedia owns what was Turner Broadcasting, including TCM and the MGM library.
AMAZON WANTS TO BUY MGM FOR ITS 4,000-FILM LIBRARY
Amazon spends billions on new movies and shows each year, but new content is only part of the streaming wars equation.
Amazon is looking to grow an even bigger presence in Hollywood. The tech giant is reportedly weeks into negotiations to acquire MGM for around $9 billion, according to multiple reports. MGM weighing acquisition comes as no surprise. Word broke in the fall that the studio was preparing for a sale and came after months of rumors and speculation that Apple could make a bid as it pours billions into its fledgling streaming service.
HOLLYWOOD RUNS THE GOLDEN GLOBES OUT OF TOWN
Last Friday, NBC-Universal extended hope for a Golden Globes show in January 2022, so long as the Hollywood Foreign Press Association acted swiftly enough to make “meaningful change.” Monday, three days later, the network announced that the 2022 Golden Globe Award show was canceled. It’s an unexpected turn of events reminiscent of the Harvey Weinstein-#MeToo cultural shift in 2017: Promising to turn over a new leaf is meaningless if the industry sees you as a noxious weed.
On May 3, 2021, the HFPA announced plans for a reform package, including a 50% increase in members over the next 18 months with a particular focus on underrepresented groups. While Dick Clark Productions and NBC–the long-time producer and broadcaster of the Golden Globes respectively supported the planned reforms, Time s Up and a group of 100 PR firms criticized the lack of given timelines for filling some of the new management positions, arguing that they woul