: On the heels of signing with Amazon MGM Studios to produce the next iteration of James Bond films alongside David Heyman, Amy Pascal has closed a multiyear first-look film deal for her Pascal Pictures banner.

Under the pact, Amazon MGM Studios will have a first look at narrative features that Pascal and producing partner Rachel O’Connor percolate. The James Bond film will not be part of the overall deal.  

Pascal seemed a natural choice along with Heyman to steer the next batch of Bond films. During her dozen years running Sony Pictures’ film and TV divisions, she oversaw Daniel Craig’s first 007 outings Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace and Skyfall, the latter becoming the first Bond film to crack the billion-dollar mark at the global box office. After exiting the exec suites at Sony, Pascal took over the Tom Holland-starrer Spider-Man franchise as producer, along with the Tom Hardy Venom series. Pascal moved her first look to Universal in 2019.

She has already made an impact at Amazon MGM even before the Bond news that came after 007 gatekeepers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson accepted a billion-dollar buyout of their creative controls to speed up progress on getting the next Bond film written and cast with a new star.     

Under Amazon MGM Studios’ Head of Film Courtenay Valenti, Amazon MGM will be vamping its upcoming slate tonight in Las Vegas at CinemaCon, and it has the highest hopes for the Pascal-produced Project Hail Mary, the Phil Lord- and Chris Miller-directed adaptation of the novel by The Martian author Andy Weir, with Ryan Gosling starring. That film will be released theatrically March 20, 2026. Pascal also produced the smart and edgy Challengers, the Luca Guadagnino-directed film that starred Zendaya.

“Amy Pascal has an unparalleled eye for identifying creative talent and a long history of supporting filmmakers to achieve their best work,” said Valenti. “Her extraordinary creative instincts and unwavering passion for storytelling make her one of the best producers working today, and we’ve been incredibly fortunate to work with her on Challengers and Project Hail Mary. Julie Rapaport and I, along with the entire film group, feel very privileged to be working with her and her incredibly talented team at Pascal Pictures and look forward to the movies we will make together in the years ahead.”

After years among a handful of women in top creative executive studio posts, Pascal accords Valenti the same level of respect.

“Courtenay Valenti is one of the most talented people I have ever worked with,” Pascal said. “Her deep knowledge about movies, her love for them and the people who make them is unmatched. She is a wonderful creative partner and a very wise and graceful executive. I count myself lucky to be working with her and her excellent team at Amazon MGM Studios. Rachel and I, and our whole team, are thrilled to be working with Courtenay, Mike Hopkins, and their top-notch group of executives.”

Pascal’s relationship with Lord and Miller began when they made the 21 Jump Street films while she ran Sony Pictures, and beyond Project Hail Mary extends to the Oscar-winning animated Spider-Verse film series, the third of which is in production for a 2027 release by Sony.

For Amazon MGM, Pascal is also producing the upcoming MGM+ and Prime Video streaming series Spider-Noir, starring Nicolas Cage. Pascal is also producing with Mark Gordon the Netflix adaptation of Narnia, which Greta Gerwig is directing. Pascal and Heyman are producing the Noah Baumbach-directed Jay Kelly for Netflix, with George Clooney and Adam Sandler. Pascal is producing her fourth installment of the Spider-Man franchise, with director Destin Daniel Cretton starting production this summer on Spider-Man: Brand New Day.