Metro Goldwyn Mayer, in what was long rumored to potentially happen, had filed for a court-approved bankruptcy last month leaving many films and franchises up in the air. According to FSR, now the studio is partially out of it’s predicament, by gathering $500 million in financing in the hopes of rebuilding the studio’s brand.

Their official press release fails to touch on specific films, however their slate of in-development and ready-for-release films includes…

the next Bond entry, Red Dawn, Jeepers Creepers 3, the animated Bunyan and Babe, Biblical biopic Mary Mother of Christ, and continued partnerships for the Hobbit films, The Matarese Circle, and The Cabin in the Woods.

The big question is how MGM plans to spend that cash. It seems like a huge amount, but The Hobbit will eat up a decent chunk of it for second breakfast, and Bond 23 will most likely make a decent divot, too. MGM might essentially be gambling a fragile fresh start on two films.

MGM is the latest in a growing number of film studios and entities, independent or otherwise, that have either gone by the wayside or seriously restructured in the financial crisis that has engulfed America. We have lost Miramax, seen Blockbuster change severely and even some agencies go through massive overhauls. Despite the supposed proclamation that we are out of the recession, proof is far from evident.