As studios become more risk-averse than ever, as evidenced by Hulu passing on Sarah Michelle Gellar and Chloé Zhao’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer reboot, another proposal to restart a beloved franchise is biting the dust. According to reports, Paramount is not moving forward with Max Landis’ treatment for a new G.I. Joe movie.
UPDATE: Variety was able to get a quote from Landis on the situation, and he revealed the set-up for his idea: Landis told Variety he was “tremendously grateful to have been given the opportunity.” He elaborated that his pitch came together “very serendipitously based on the coolness of the weird and subversive idea.” That idea centered around the film franchise’s villain, Cobra, “having successfully taken over the world and reduced GI Joe to a conspiracy theory.” It’s very easy to understand why Paramount would pass on a story like that.
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The Search Continues
While some will be upset by this news, it’s important to know that Paramount is still meeting to discuss ideas for rebooting the Real American Hero franchise. Plus, Danny McBride’s treatment is still in the mix. If you recall, both Landis and McBride were courting Paramount with their ideas, with the possibility that the studio would combine both scripts into one project. Now that Landis’ concepts are no longer in consideration, that makes more room for McBride’s idea to shine through.
Why Did Paramount Pass on Landis’ Treatment?
While not confirmed, Deadline says they heard Landis’ pitch was a grounded spy thriller featuring classic G.I. Joe characters but with a satirical adventure tone. Naturally, Paramount wants to sell action figures alongside the film’s release and passed on Landis’ treatment because it did not align with getting kids to buy toys. According to one source, “the studio didn’t commit to the project due to its satirical artistic tone, it had nothing to do with Landis’ past.”
Moving On
Yesterday, the loss of the Buffy reboot got me feeling bummed out, but I can’t say the same about losing Landis’ G.I. Joe pitch. I didn’t think he was the right person for the job from the start, and after hearing his idea was to present the brand with a satirical tone… yeah. I’m not a filmmaker, and I don’t know what G.I. Joe needs to be relevant again, but Landis’ concept doesn’t sound like the ticket. I wish the studio would focus more on making a fun movie than on using the film as leverage to sell toys, but that’s the nature of rebooting something like G.I. Joe. The two go hand-in-hand. The fact that they’re opening up the floor for more creativity is exciting. I’m sure there are plenty of filmmakers with nostalgia for G.I. Joe that would love to take a crack at rebooting the franchise. Line them up, and see what they’ve got.
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