Barbara Broccoli made calls to her collaborators to tell them she and Michael G. Wilson were making a deal to relinquish James Bond creative rights.

The studio will take the reins for the 60-year-old movie property, while Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli will remain co-owners as they move to the sidelines as part of a joint venture transaction.

Amazon MGM Studios is set to take creative control of the James Bond franchise. The shock announcement — which is sure to shake and, indeed, stir the industry — was made Thursday, alongside the news that long-time producers and custodians of 007,