David Ellison is a busy man. Upon acquiring Paramount Pictures in late 2025, his team saw fit to make a multi-billion-dollar deal with the UFC, host an unprecedented sporting event on the White House lawn, and seemingly steer the meandering vessel that is Paramount+ out of choppy waters. In a bid to double down on such tentpole IPs as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Transformers, the think-tank at Paramount is looking to polish up the boots of the G.I. Joe franchise with Danny McBride at the helm.
Credit:
Fred Norris / HBO
Unlikely Hero
Under the old guard, Paramount released three G.I. Joe films between 2009 and 2021. 2009 brought G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra. They followed up with a sequel, 2013’s G.I Joe: Retaliation, and a final film, 2021’s Snake Eyes spinoff. Cobra and Retaliation made moderate profits against their respective budgets but suffered from source-material deviations and a non-recurring cast. The COVID-19 pandemic and a massive break between canonical films doomed the release of Snake Eyes. Long story short, the franchise is in need of a desperate resupply, and who would have guessed that funny man Danny McBride would be handling the logistics?
Childhood Connection
McBride, famously known for a laundry list of comedy classics, most recently the HBO series The Righteous Gemstones, has an unlikely soft spot for the Joes. On a recent episode of Josh Horowitz‘s HAPPY SAD CONFUSED podcast, McBride expressed, “G.I. Joe was my thing when I was a kid, I liked that more than Star Wars, more than anything.” He went on to discuss that he originally contacted Paramount to pitch a G.I. Joe spinoff series called Dreadnaughts. Paramount was hot on the idea of a reboot, especially considering the performance of the most recent trilogy. However, they needed a new film to establish the IP and ultimately offered McBride a shot at a fresh G.I. Joe film.
His most recent role on Gemstones saw McBride credited as creator, writer, and showrunner of the series. As lead writer, he showed a genuine ability to step out of his comedy comfort zone and really nail dramatic storytelling. Albeit with a 50% dose of raucous humor. Paramount is looking to take a stab at a serious interpretation of the source material, and McBride is keen to deliver an authentic Joe experience in his first time as a film director.
G.I. Joe has had a few iterations over the decades. It saw its inception as an action figure line in the 1960s. It was then packaged and relaunched in the 80s, where it seamlessly folded into the Stallone/Schwarzenegger action hero era. The relaunch was a golden time for the Joes. Figures sold like hot cakes, in no small part due to the release of the ’80s cartoon series. That’s what helped firmly establish the beloved heroes and villains of the series that people remember today. Heroes such as Duke and the aforementioned Snake Eyes paired against the vile, outlandish Cobra Commander.
The franchise, depending on the iteration, has seen a mix of slapstick humor and serious, albeit ridiculous storytelling. With McBride at the turret and belt-fed with passion, Cobra Commander better run for cover.
