Just last January when MGM+ launched as a rebrand of EPIX the service boasted half of the James Bond franchise movies. And, most of those films were streaming in 4K Ultra HD.
As of now, however, the service only has a few James Bond titles and none of them are actually streaming in 4K, even if the app’s thumbnails indicate they are.
I found this out while searching through the MGM+ library via the Apple TV 4K media player where it was impossible to find even one title in 4K. This is unfortunate, because one of the incentives to get MGM+ was to watch James Bond movies in 4K, even if the more classic titles (pre-Casino Royale starring Daniel Craig, not the non-Eon production from 1967), were never officially remastered and released in 4K.
Newer James Bond titles such as No Time To Die are, of course, been readily available in 4K since initially releasing in home media formats. But it should be noted that while No Time To Die was previously available in 4k on MGM+, now it is only available in HD.
When MGM+ first launched it pretty much split the franchise films with HBO Max (now Max), with just over a dozen titles. Max now holds just over a dozen James Bond movies ranging from the premiere title Dr. No (1963) to Quantum of Solace (2008).
MGM+ will have to up its game if it wants to be known as a streaming destination for home theater enthusiasts that want to watch the highest quality. Let’s just hope they don’t introduce a higher-priced tier like Max did just to get the 4K resolution.
