Paramount Nixes Max Landis G.I. Joe Pitch — What It Means for the Franchise
Landis bills his idea as subversive and weird — but it plays like G.I. Joe: Retaliation.
Paramount and Hasbro just shut the door on Max Landis pitching a fresh G.I. Joe movie. The wild part? This came right after word on Feb. 27 that the studio had two competing takes in play: one from Danny McBride and one from Landis. McBride is still in the mix. Landis is out.
What Landis pitched
Studio chatter pins the decision on creative differences. Landis says his concept came together fast and leaned into a left-field idea: a present-day world where Cobra already won and the Joes are basically an urban legend.
It came together very serendipitously based on the coolness of the weird and subversive idea.
He also framed the pass as part of the usual studio-development churn and was a bit amused the whole thing leaked.
This is just how big IP development always is. Honestly, I was surprised it was reported at all.
He added that he was tremendously grateful for the shot.
Why that probably did not fly
On paper, Cobra in charge is a splashy swing. In practice, it is not exactly new terrain for the franchise. 2013's G.I. Joe: Retaliation already flirted with the whole 'Cobra runs the world' angle — right down to a Cobra banner flapping over the White House.
Then there is the off-screen baggage. Landis has been accused by multiple women of harassment and assault. On top of that, beyond 2012's Chronicle — which is approaching the 15-year-old mark — his filmography has been thin on critical or commercial wins. If you are a studio trying to rehab a battered brand, that is a tough combo to sell upstairs.
The Ellison pattern everyone noticed
Landis getting a meeting in the first place raised eyebrows because it fits a recent pattern around Skydance chief David Ellison, a key player at Paramount these days. Back in 2019, he hired former Pixar boss John Lasseter to run Skydance Animation. More recently, Brett Ratner has been floated around a potential fourth Rush Hour movie. Both men have faced harassment and/or assault accusations. Meanwhile, 'Rogue One' co-writer Gary Whitta said he turned down an invite to pitch G.I. Joe over Ellison's ties to the Trump administration. Make of that what you will.
Where G.I. Joe stands right now
If you are a Joe fan, Landis stepping aside likely feels like a relief. Still, the bigger headache remains: Paramount has not cracked how to relaunch this thing. We have been here before — and not in a good way.
- 2009–2013: Two connected films arrived, then fizzled out after Retaliation.
- 2021: Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins stumbled at the box office; follow-up plans quietly went away.
- 2023: Transformers: Rise of the Beasts teased a live-action Transformers/Joe crossover. Since then? Crickets.
For now, McBride's pitch is still moving, which suggests a very different tone from past attempts. Until something actually shoots, though, the Joes remain stuck in development purgatory — again.