Danny McBride, known for his comedic work on "The Righteous Gemstones," is developing a new G.I. Joe film for Paramount, which he describes as a grounded action-suspense movie, not a comedy.
McBride shared details about his vision for the franchise during a recent appearance on the Happy Sad Confused podcast. He explained that while he grew up a fan of G.I. Joe, his initial pitch to Paramount centered on the Dreadnoks, a mercenary group within the universe. Paramount, however, expressed interest in rebooting the main G.I. Joe franchise and tasked McBride with developing a script for "G.I. Joe proper."
Working with collaborators from "The Righteous Gemstones," McBride completed a script that was ultimately chosen over one by Max Landis. Paramount appears enthusiastic about his direction for the film.
"Weirdly, it grounds G.I. Joe; it's not a comedy," McBride stated. "It's like kind of suspense and action, and I think it's going to be a lot of fun." The film will follow Duke and other members of the Joes, with a significant portion of the plot set in Springfield, a town secretly controlled by Cobra, as depicted in the comics.
This new G.I. Joe movie marks a return for the franchise to theaters, following the 2021 film "Snake Eyes." The project also appears distinct from the crossover elements hinted at in "Transformers: Rise of the Beasts." While Paramount has yet to make an official announcement, McBride's involvement suggests a potentially fresh approach for the G.I. Joe cinematic universe.