Danny McBride’s G.I. Joe Script Has A Huge Update, Including Early Plot Details – And A Wild Original Pitch

Previously Paramount’s efforts to revive the G.I. Joe cinematic universe saw a script bake-off between Max Landis and Danny McBride. With the series representing a hot ticket in the partnership between the studio and Hasbro Entertainment, the project is also a presumably huge player in Paramount-Skydance’s big push for known IP tentpoles.

Announcing a winner for such a competition is no slight feat, and it sounds like Danny McBride is G.I. Joe’s new mastermind after all. What’s even better is that the Halloween (2018) co-writer already has a new promotion to crow about; and has already started dropping clues as to what his angle on the classic toy brand might focus on.

G.I. Joe’s Cinematic Future Is (Literally) On The Fast Track

Per news coming out of The Wrap, Danny McBride will also be directing the movie coming out of his G.I. Joe script. Official plot details are, of course, being withheld for a later date. However, The Righteous Gemstones star appears to have hit this project out of the park. So much so that Paramount CEO David Ellison considers the movie a huge priority. 

Further along in the report cited above, the new G.I. Joe is such a high priority Ellison wants it to be in theaters before Peter Berg/Taylor Sheridan’s Call of Duty movie. McBride’s script may not be the only reason though, as the Joes war against Cobra Commander absolutely fits the studio’s current strategy to focus on familiar brands. Especially since it’s been 13 years since a mainline G.I. Joe film has been seen in theaters. 

With that directive rolling out at Paramount’s CinemaCon 2026 panel, the likes of Top Gun, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and the upcoming Sonic the Hedgehog movies are in the mix. While we don’t have too many details on most of those forthcoming projects, a recent interview with Danny McBride does point to a potential direction for this new go at Joe. 

How Danny McBride’s Wildly G.I. Joe Pitch Led To His Eventual Script

Sitting down for an interview with Josh Horowitz’s Happy Sad Confused podcast, the host got Mr. McBride to start laying down the foundation for the real American Hero’s cinematic resurgence.  Through working with Righteous Gemstones’ collaborators Jeff Fradley and John Carcieri, he proceeded to cook up this mostly mysterious project. 

I say “mostly,” because the interview led the Eastbound and Down star to spill these details on the future G.I. Joe movie’s plot: 

It grounds G.I. Joe, it’s not a comedy, it’s like [a] kind of suspense and action [movie]. … You’re following Duke, and a group of other Joes. … There’s that town in the comics Springfield, which is a town that’s secretly all Cobra; and so that is where our film takes place. 

Furthermore, Danny McBride’s remarks confirm that Paramount is quite enthusiastic over the new script. With hopes to start shooting next year, G.I. Joe could be heading to theaters much sooner than anticipated. 

In the same breath, McBride also shared details on an original pitch that put his G.I. Joe film on the map. I can see why Paramount gave the  following concept a pass, but that doesn’t mean I have to like it: 

I had an idea for a Dreadnoks movie. I was like, I just wanted to do a Dreadnoks movie; and I went to Paramount, and pitched it. And they were like, ‘Well, the franchise kind of needs to be launched. So we can’t come out with a Dreadnoks movie. Would you have a take on … an angle for G.I. Joe proper?’ And I was like, ‘Hell yeah, I’ll have an angle for that.’ 

Admittedly, a villain-centric movie focusing on G.I. Joe’s band of biker mercenaries, led by Zartan, would be a strange way to start a new chapter. Considering the debacle over 2021’s Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins, it’s probably best to start over somewhere familiar. Meanwhile, that original pitch could have been the fresh shot of adrenaline the over 60-year old brand could have benefitted from. 

Perhaps there’s room for Dreadknoks in the future, if Danny McBride didn’t reskin that concept for his upcoming G.I. Joe movie. While there’s no concrete plans to start shooting in 2027, you know that any further updates will hit THS Movie News as they develop. Which is good, because knowing is half the battle!