Skip to main content August 18, 2025 12:38pm Share on Facebook Share to Flipboard Send an Email Show additional share options Share on LinkedIn Share on Pinterest Share on Reddit Share on Tumblr Share on Whats App Print the Article Post a Comment David Ellison Getty Images Share on Facebook Share to Flipboard Send an Email Show additional share options Share on LinkedIn Share on Pinterest Share on Reddit Share on Tumblr Share on Whats App Print the Article Post a Comment The Skydance-owned Paramount continues its breakneck dealmaking. A little over a week after taking hold of the studio, the David Ellison-led executive squadron is in talks to make a movie output deal with Legendary Pictures, the producers of the Dune and Monsterverse movie franchises. Legendary previously had output deals with Warner Bros and Sony Pictures, with its deal with Sony expiring at the end of last year and its Warners deal ending in late 2022. Paramount had no comment. Related Stories 'Scary Movie' Reboot: Anna Faris, Regina Hall Reteam With Wayans Brothers for 2026 Release David Ellison Shows Off His New Throne at Paramount, With 'Top Gun 3,' 'Star Trek' and 'World War Z' Called Priorities Any deal with Legendary excludes the Godzilla-Kong movies as well as the Dune franchise, which lucratively remain parked at Warners. Its time at Sony wasn’t very fruitful; Biblical comedy The Book of Clarence bombed, as did the action comedy The Machine. Still, the company is making a new version of Street Fighter, which will go into production soon, for the studio. That said, Legendary still makes hits. A Minecraft Movie, released via Warners, is the year’s second-biggest movie, grossing over $955 million worldwide. A sequel would be at Warners, which also has the Alejandro Iñárritu-directed Tom Cruise movie that it will release. Perhaps the biggest title that Legendary has is Gundam, the very big-budget adaptation of the Japanese anime and manga centered on mecha warriors. That feature is to star Sydney Sweeney, who is working very closely with director Jim Mickle on the script as it aims to go into production next year. It is unclear when the talks for this deal began. Sources said the dealmaking began earlier this spring, when Paramount was being run by co-CEO Brian Robbins. “If you’re Paramount, you need lots of movies and you need them quickly,” said one insider commenting on the studio rebuilding efforts. The merger between Skydance and Paramount Global closed Aug, 7. Since then, the new entity has made a $7.7 billion deal for exclusive U.S. broadcast rights to the Ultimate Fighting Championship for seven years and is in the midst of deep negotiations to bring the Duffer Bros., the sibling creators of Stranger Things, to the lot under a rich deal that would include a theatrical component. THR Newsletters Sign up for THR news straight to your inbox every day Heat Vision ‘Night Always Comes’: How Benjamin Caron and Vanessa Kirby Went from the Royal Family to Working-Class America Josh Greenbaum Ben Stiller’s Pickleball Comedy ‘The Dink’ Lands at Apple Kevin Costner, Jake Gyllenhaal to Star in ‘Honeymoon with Harry’ for Amazon MGM (Exclusive) Nia DaCosta Nia DaCosta Reveals Her One Amendment to Alex Garland’s ’28 Years Later: The Bone Temple’ Script — “More Infected” Heat Vision Netflix Giving Guillermo del Toro’s ‘Frankenstein’ a Theatrical Release After All Venice Film Festival Jharrel Jerome and Teo Yoo Join Golden Globes Impact Prize for Documentary Jury at Venice The Hollywood Reporter is a part of Penske Media Corporation. © 2025 The Hollywood Reporter, LLC. All Rights Reserved. THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER is a registered trademark of The Hollywood Reporter, LLC. Powered by WordPress.com VIP