Paramount Lost Tom Cruise—Now It’s Betting Big on Will Smith as Its Next Marquee Star

Will Smith is in full comeback mode, and Paramount looks ready to hand him the keys to the big-screen kingdom again. The chatter: a new push to get him back on top after the 2022 Oscars slap stalled a career that used to run on autopilot. There are some sharp behind-the-scenes details here, including why Tom Cruise keeps popping up in this story. Buckle up.

The Will Smith reboot plan (as told by the rumor mill)

RadarOnline says Smith, now 57, is running hot at Westbrook (his production company) after landing a large-scale deal with Paramount designed to put him back in the big-budget theatrical lane. The tone behind the scenes, per the outlet, is intense: Smith wants redemption, he wants it now, and he’s reportedly pushing his team hard to deliver. If you’re not keeping up, you’re out. That’s the vibe.

Despite living separately for years, Jada Pinkett Smith is still financially tied to Westbrook. And the mandate, according to the same reporting, is not subtle: build star-driven tentpoles with Will front and center.

Another claimed wrinkle: Smith is laser-focused on impressing David Ellison at Paramount. As RadarOnline puts it, Ellison is making a bet on Smith, and the expectation is clear — results, not excuses.

Why Paramount cares: look at the Tom Cruise template

Paramount’s long marriage to Tom Cruise has powered the studio for decades, but it hasn’t been drama-free. Simon Pegg recently told a story on the Literally! with Rob Lowe podcast (via Daily Mail) about the Ghost Protocol era, when the studio allegedly flirted with swapping Cruise out for Jeremy Renner. Cruise, Pegg says, caught wind of it, flew from Vancouver to Los Angeles, and told then-chairman Brad Grey: no chance. Christopher McQuarrie came in, the script got reworked, and Ethan Hunt stayed Ethan Hunt.

"I ain’t going nowhere."

That line, remembered by stunt coordinator Gregg Smrz, sums it up. Ghost Protocol then blew up worldwide, and Pegg has described Cruise as operating with the muscle of an entire studio. Rob Lowe even shared a story about Cruise asking for an extra $30 million mid-production — and getting it. And while the next Mission: Impossible has been positioned as the finale, Pegg doesn’t see Cruise walking away.

The box office math (why this bet makes sense)

Paramount’s move here is simple: movie stars who travel globally still matter. Cruise has been that for them. Smith was that for everyone, once upon a time. The numbers tell you why a reunion with theatrical spectacle is attractive:

• Tom Cruise highs: Top Gun: Maverick – $1.45B; Mission: Impossible – Fallout – $786M; Ghost Protocol – $694M; Rogue Nation – $688M; War of the Worlds – $606M.
• Will Smith highs: Aladdin – $1.04B; Independence Day – $817M; Suicide Squad – $749M; Men in Black 3 – $654M; Hancock – $624M.

So what does Smith’s new push actually look like?

Per the reporting, Smith and Paramount are aligning on theatrical-first action comedies, thrillers, and sci‑fi — the global crowd-pleasers that built his career after The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, and reportedly helped him amass a $350 million fortune. It’s a pivot away from recent streaming detours like Emancipation and Bright and back to planting flags for franchises that can run for years.

Titles floated around this new phase include Sugar Bandits and Rabbit Hole, which suggests a more grounded, muscular flavor without losing scale. Translation: big, punchy, four-quadrant plays where Smith gets to be Smith — just sharper.

The bottom line

If RadarOnline’s read is right, Paramount is betting that Will Smith can still open worldwide and that Westbrook can supply the machine to back it up. The studio knows the power of a singular movie star — they’ve been living it with Cruise — and Smith is swinging to be that guy again.

Does Will still have the juice to launch a new global franchise, or is Paramount gambling on yesterday’s heat? Tell me where you land.