On Feb. 27, 2026, Paramount Pictures made the shocking announcement that they had hired Danny McBride and Max Landis to pen two separate scripts for a reboot of the G.I. Joe franchise with the intention of potentially merging both projects. Landis’ involvement was particularly shocking, as after one hit with Chronicle in 2012, followed by a string of box office and critical flops, he hadn’t worked in Hollywood since 2019, following a The Daily Beast report in which eight women accused him of sexual and emotional abuse.
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story screenwriter Gary Whitta, who also penned the scripts for The Book of Eli and After Earth, revealed on BlueSky that he turned down an offer to write a G.I. Joe movie for Paramount in November. “This was my response when my agents asked if I wanted to pitch on this reboot back in November,” he wrote. “I really hope more creatives do the same so that the likes of Max Landis are all they can hire. I may not make an honest buck but I’m a hundred per cent American and I don’t work for no two-bit Nazi.” See the full response below:
David Ellison’s Controversial Leadership at Paramount is Creating Strong Dividies
Cobra taking over the White House in G.I. JoeParamount Pictures
The dinner among Trump, Ellison, and Prince Mohammed bin Salman that Whitta referenced in his post took place on Nov. 18, 2025. Ellison has been very vocal about cozying up to the Trump administration, as the CEO of Paramount Skydance attended the State of the Union address on Feb. 24, 2026, just two days before Paramount officially become the winning bidder for Warner Bros. when Netflix dropped out. Following a request from Trump, David Ellison ordered Rush Hour 4 into development with Brett Ratner, director of the Melania documentary and another filmmaker who’s been accused of sexual assault and misconduct by multiple women.
The hiring of Max Landis shows a continued pattern in David Ellison’s leadership of courting talent that’s been shadowed by controversy. Ellison hired John Lasseter, a former executive at Pixar Animation and Walt Disney Animation who stepped down following multiple allegations of inappropriate conduct, to run Skydance Animation. Aside from producing Rush Hour 4 with Ratner, Paramount has also hired Johnny Depp to star as Ebenezer Scrooge in Ebeneezer: A Christmas Carol, the actor’s first studio film in eight years. Ellison’s decisions appear to be driven by a desire to buck convention, as well as to hire formerly highly sought-after talent on the cheap.
Whitta’s post, along with the news of a Landis-penned G.I. Joe movie, comes against the backdrop of the potential purchase of Warner Bros. by Paramount and the release of Scream 7, which infamously fired star Melissa Barrera in 2023 following her post criticizing Israel’s assault on Gaza. While people like Barrera and Whitta stand by their convictions, will that become more difficult in a world where Paramount could potentially hold more creative power over the entertainment industry? Reports have emerged that Paramount has its own banned list of actors who’ve spoken up for Gaza. Will they also do the same for individuals who speak out against the Trump administration? How many can afford to have a backbone against what might be the most powerful company in the entertainment world?