“Robocop,” “Stargate,” “Legally Blonde” and “Barbershop” are among titles in the works for film and television as Amazon seeks to boost MGM IP

EXCLUSIVE: MGM’s extensive film and TV catalog built over the past century was the primary reason for Amazon’s $8.5 billion acquisition of the legendary Hollywood studio. Over the past year, since the deal closed in March 2022, Amazon Studios has combed through MGM’s library and identified a dozen early titles for film and/or television development, including robocop, stargate, Naturally blonde, fame, Hair Salon, The Magnificent Seven, Pink panther And The Thomas Crown Affair.

We’ve heard that A-list creatives have asked clients to change the MGM IP they’re fans of. Additionally, Amazon Studios also relies on its own talent roster for some projects.

Each title is approached differently – some are sent to film, some to television, and some big ones get both the film and television treatment.

Amazon Studios, for example, is early in the conversation Naturally blonde, for both a movie and a potential TV series, sources said. There have already been isolated attempts to get a third one Naturally blonde Filming from the ground up for the past five years.

Amazon has similar plans in this regard stargate We hear that both film and TV rates are being considered, with a film likely to go first.

Robocop It’s also being talked about for film and TV, with a possible first TV show, Deadline hears.

In addition, Amazon Studios is actively developing TV series based on fame, hairdresser And the beautiful seven, said sources.

There are also discussions about a Thomas Crown Affair movie and one Pink panther Film that could be animated, sources said. A poltergeist Project is also a possibility in the future, we hear.

Deadline has already announced plans for one Believe Universe that spans film and television Amazon Studios talked about with franchise star and filmmaker Michael B. Jordan. The studio also just inked a first-look deal with Sylvester Stallone and his Balboa Productions for film and television projects. we hear the expansion of stony Burn to TV can be part of it.

There are currently no plans for any other James Bond series, aside from the unscripted competition series that was announced shortly after Amazon’s acquisition of MGM was completed, as franchise producers focus on figuring out the next installment of the film.

The identification and development of MGM IP has so far been slow. Part of that was set up because the new owners want to respect the process, given the great legacy of the titles in question.

Some of this is necessary given the complexity of some of the underlying rights (Rocky is just one example) that took months to unravel.

The nearly 100-year-old studio has had several owners and financing partners for many of its most famous films. It’s also a studio that reportedly kept much of its archive several hundred feet underground in an actual salt mine in Kansas, where scenes from movies like 2001: A Space Odyssey and raw screenplays by the likes of Woody Allen, Samuel Beckett, and even the infamous Napoleon Script.

Tasked with sifting through the complexities of rights—who owns what and who was originally involved—is Cynthia Waldman, who has worked for the company for about a decade and is now MGM’s head of library rights. A source told Deadline that Waldman’s job is to act as an entertainment archaeologist, helping producers sort out the intricacies of rights to projects they want to adapt.

The Robocop Sci-fi action franchise follows the futuristic adventures of Alex Murphy, a Detroit, Michigan police officer who is fatally injured on the job and transformed into a powerful cyborg named RoboCop. The first film with Peter Weller started in 1987. Three sequels followed robot head 2 in 1990, robot head 3 1993 & robot head 4 in 2014.

The Naturally blonde Film franchise based on the novel Naturally blonde by Amanda Brown. The first film debuted in 2001, starring Reese Witherspoon as Harvard law student Elle Woods. A sequel followed Legally Blonde 2: Red, White and Blonde 2003 and 2009 direct-to-video spin-off Legal blondeswhich was created as a pilot for a potential series. legal blonde 3, co-written by Mindy Kaling and Dan Goor took several years in development.

The stargate Military science fiction franchise, consisting of film and television, began in 1994 with a film directed by Roland Emmerich. Two more films followed Stargate: The Ark of Truth 2008 & Stargate: Continuumalso in 2008. On TV Stargate SG-1 was one of the longest-running science fiction series in American television history. It followed Stargate Atlantis 2004 and Stargate Universe 2009 animated series Stargate Infinity in 2002 and web series Stargate Origin in 2018.

The Ice Cube Star hairdresser Franchise started with the 2002 film directed by Tim Story. It followed Barber Shop 2: Back in Business 2004 and Hair salon: the next cut in 2016. A spin-off, Beauty salonfeaturing Queen Latifah, was released in 2005 along with a hairdresser TV programs.

Fame, The 1980 musical film, directed by Alan Parker, spawned several TV series – with or without a script – as well as a film remake and a 2009 stage musical.

The United Artists Western of 1960 The beautiful sevena remake by Akira Kurosawa Seven samuraispawned three sequels, a remake and a TV series.

The 1963 film comedy the pink panther, introduced by Inspector Jacques Clouseau was started again; The 1982 supernatural horror film poltergeist got sequels and remakes; and that 1968 The Thomas Crown Affair got a remake.