A brand new battle plan has been mapped out for yet another attempt at bringing G.I. Joe to the big screen, and they’re calling an undoubtedly divisive choice to help get the job done. The Hollywood Reporter broke the news that formerly disgraced screenwriter Max Landis has been hired to pen a new script that brings the toyline to life. It’ll mark the first significant gig he’s been given since the writer of Chronicle and Bright was accused by eight women of emotional and sexual abuse, leading him to be dropped by various agencies in 2019.
Landis won’t be the only person sending the Joes into battle, though, as Halloween screenwriter and co-creator of The Righteous Gemstones and Eastbound and Down, Danny McBride, has also been offered a chance to write a treatment for a new film. Sources have revealed to The Hollywood Reporter that, while the two might be writing separate stories, the studio will consider merging them into a single movie.
Should this get the green light, it’ll mark the fourth attempt to bring the heroes to the screen, after three failed attempts so far. G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, starring Channing Tatum and Marlon Wayans, debuted in 2009, followed by G.I. Joe: Retaliation, which featured Dwayne Johnson trying and failing to take over the franchise in 2013. The last attempt was in 2021 with Snake Eyes, which had Henry Golding in the lead and unfortunately died a quiet death, too.
The new effort of smashing toys together in cinematic fashion is yet another bold approach from Paramount, who sound like they’re giving the Joes the same push as the Transformers. If you cast your mind back to 2023, Transformers: Rise of the Beasts ended with a tease of a crossover with the All-American Heroes. This venture was one of five films involving the Robots in Disguise that were on the way, so who knows if the proposed GI Joe movie ideas coming from Landis and McBride will include any mention of Optimus Prime and pals, if at all.
