The new Paramount leadership has detailed their upcoming movie plans, which include more Star Trek and the sequel Top Gun 3. On August 7, Paramount Global merged with Skydance Media to become the Paramount Skydance Corporation. The newly formed entertainment conglomerate’s holdings include Paramount Skydance Studios, CBS, MTV, Nickelodeon, and Comedy Central.
Paramount Pictures, which is one of the oldest film studios in the world, is known for their long history of big-screen productions, including installments in a wide variety of franchises, such as Friday the 13th, Mean Girls, A Quiet Place, The Godfather, The Naked Gun, Scream, Sonic the Hedgehog, and Mission: Impossible.
Per Deadline, the studio’s leadership, including co-chairs Dana Goldberg and Josh Greenstein, detailed their upcoming movie plans at a press event on Wednesday. For instance, theatrical distribution is still a focus, as Paramount’s Chair of Direct to Consumer, Cindy Holland, said that “made-for-streaming movies aren’t a priority for me.”
While the only major deal that has been officially closed is High Side, the racing bike crime movie that re-teams A Complete Unknown director James Mangold and star Timothée Chalamet, Goldberg said that “Star Trek is a priority across the company.” The franchise currently has two movies in development alongside its many television properties.
Goldberg added that “Top Gun is a priority,” hinting at the long-stalled Top Gun 3, which would follow the billion-dollar 2022 legacy sequel Top Gun: Maverick. Also on the slate to be considered by the new regime are the scripts for three Transformers movies that could follow 2023’s Rise of the Beasts and, per The Hollywood Reporter, a new World War Z movie.
What This Means For Paramount
Not every Paramount franchise has been dormant, as there are multiple upcoming franchise installments set to debut between 2025 and 2027. These include the fourth A Quiet Place movie, the sequel to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, Scream 7, SpongeBob Movie: The Search for Squarepants, Scary Movie, The Legend of Aang: The Last Airbender, and Sonic the Hedgehog 4.
Scream 7, which premieres on February 27, 2026, was directed by the franchise’s original screenwriter Kevin Williamson.
However, they have quite a few properties on their hands with future installments that have been stuck in production hell for some time. This is especially true of the Star Trek franchise, which hasn’t had a big screen outing since 2016 with Star Trek Beyond.
If their priorities stay as-is, this new regime may be able to give many of these franchises the kickstart that they need in order to get back off the ground.
Our Take On The Paramount Update
One of the most surprising updates from the new Paramount leadership is the fact that a new installment in the World War Z franchise is still on the table. 2013’s World War Z, a zombie movie loosely based on the Max Brooks novel of the same name, is one of Brad Pitt’s highest-grossing movies, having earned $540 million worldwide.
Although a sequel to World War Z was dated for 2017, it was eventually delayed and then scrapped entirely.
However, the property’s sudden return to the fore seems of a piece with the new priorities for Paramount, as detailed in these latest reports. While they still have a slate of original movies that are major priorities, they seem to be making more of an effort to keep some of their strongest IPs afloat.
