Complicating matters further, Salke’s tenure also drew scrutiny from major industry figures. During Amazon’s acquisition of MGM in 2021, longtime James Bond producer Barbara Broccoli reportedly bristled at Salke’s involvement in discussions about the future of the franchise. Though she never named Salke directly, Broccoli gave a pointed quote to The Guardian.

“We’re not going to make a Bond film unless we’re going to be very proud of it,” she said. “We’re going to make it when it’s ready. I’d say that Bond is not a content brand. It’s a cinematic experience. So that’s what we’re going to do. We’re not going to be rushed into anything by people who are just trying to fill slots on a platform.”

Rumors swirled for weeks that Broccoli was deeply offended when Salke referred to Bond as “content” behind the scenes, and some attribute this quote to that rumored incident.

Interesting point from Broccoli. "Content" should be definitionally neutral but it has clearly come to mean, essentially, slop.

Despite the controversy, Salke’s supporters point to recent hits like Reacher, Fallout, and Mr. & Mrs. Smith as evidence of her success. In his email, Hopkins praised her leadership and highlighted a strong slate of upcoming releases.

“Her vision, creativity and industry relationships were (and are) so apparent… The Rings of Power, Fallout, Reacher, Saltburn, and others speak to the hits under her leadership that have stirred cultural conversation and delivered incredible storytelling.”

The numbers should be able to provide more insight into this.

• Reacher: $80-100M for season 1
• Fallout: $153M for season 1
• Rings of Power: $465M for season 1 plus $250M to purchase rights from the Tolkien estate = $715M total

How much does anyone want to bet that the losses from Rings of Power eclipsed the entire revenue streams of Amazon's lesser shows?