Paramount Locks Down 2020 Release Date For G.I. Joe 3

Just when you thought the G.I. Joe franchise had been quietly decommissioned, Hollywood finds a way.

After years of radio silence, Paramount has today blown the dust off its dormant action series to announce a release date for G.I. Joe 3: March 27th, 2020.

It’s the first tangible sign of development since the release of Retaliation in 2013, when G.I. Joe was placed on hiatus indefinitely to allow time for Dwayne Johnson’s busy schedule – not unlike Fast and Furious, the Jumanji star entered the series in time for Retaliation, which was a much-needed upgrade over the po-faced Rise of the Cobra.

Fast forward to now, and a G.I. Joe 3 is officially in the pipeline. Last we reported, Aaron Berg and D.J. Caruso (xXx: The Return of Xander Cage) had been hired to write and direct, respectively, though it’s unclear if any cast members (see: Johnson, Gambit‘s Channing Tatum, Bruce Willis, Adrianne Palicki) have signed on to return.

One thing’s for sure: in the words of Hasbro chief Simon Waters, the world has changed since 2009, and G.I. Joe 3 will be vastly different than the balls-to-the-wall action movie that is Rise of the Cobra.

The world has changed, and I think you’re going to see G.I. Joe changing with it. There’s going to be a much more contemporary approach to the whole franchise, and that will allow us to develop different characters. We hope to create a head snap. It’s a different kind of Joe – one that still resonates with ‘Joe’ fans but brings in an uninitiated audience and expands the audience internationally and domestically.

You can’t fault Waters’ enthusiasm, but neither Rise of the Cobra nor Retaliation managed to crack $400 million, so we’re a little skeptical that the so-far untitled G.I. Joe 3 will be able to swoop in and reverse the franchise’s fortunes. More on Paramount’s action series (along with its potential shared universe) when we have it.