Skydance Pictures co-chairs Dana Goldberg and Josh Greenstein have inherited a job that starts with a sequel. They are now responsible for making the incoming Warner Bros. theatrical slates for 2027 to 2029 work, and the first item is Barbie 2.
Why Barbie 2 is first
The goal, as Deadline reports, is to bring back Greta Gerwig to direct and co-write with Noah Baumbach, with Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling returning. The reason is commercial, not sentimental: Barbie is Warner Bros.’ highest-grossing film ever, with $1.44 billion worldwide.
The new regime also has to resolve other loose ends. Jonah Hill’s reportedly finished comedy The Cut Off was originally dated against The Odyssey this year and then undated. Baz Luhrmann’s Jehanne d’Arc is waiting on a new script draft in hopes of a spring start.
What the slate actually holds
Deadline’s project-by-project breakdown separates the real near-term titles from greenlight candidates and development. The dated and near-dated work includes:
- Finished or nearing release: Clayface (Oct. 23), The Cat in the Hat (Nov. 6), Dune: Part Three (Dec. 18), Animal Friends (Jan. 22, 2027).
- Post-production: Godzilla x Kong: Supernova (March 26, 2027), Man of Tomorrow (July 9, 2027), A Minecraft Movie Squared (July 23, 2027), The Conjuring: First Communion (Sept. 10, 2027) and Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum (Dec. 17, 2027).
- In production or pre-production: an untitled Ocean’s prequel with Bradley Cooper and Margot Robbie (June 25, 2027), Nancy Meyers’ untitled holiday film (Dec. 25, 2027), The Batman Part II (Feb. 18, 2028), Final Destination 7 (May 12, 2028) and Jehanne d’Arc (Nov. 22, 2028).
Greenlight candidates include The Flood, the Weapons prequel Gladys and a possible Matrix 5.
The math behind the review
Skydance co-CEO David Ellison used the Day One presser to argue the studio will not retreat from expensive swings, even after Digger, the $160 million Tom Cruise political satire, flopped. Deadline quotes him saying: “We’re going to make a complete diverse slate. One of the things I’m a big believer in is original storytelling.”
He also gave the numbers that will shape every decision: more than $30 billion a year in pro-forma content spend, against $79 billion in net debt. Co-financing is one pressure valve on risky bets. But Deadline notes a cheaper alternative under discussion: pay the stage AGs’ penalties of $30 million for any film the studio cannot deliver in a 30-picture slate, rather than risk a $300 million production-and-marketing gamble.
Two studios, one release calendar
Warner Bros. and Paramount Pictures will remain separate creatively, and the two studios can even compete with each other for projects. Co-CEO Ynon Kriez said the coordination will come in scheduling. In Deadline’s account, the plan is to “choreograph the release schedule, and optimize it by genre and by audience demographic.”
That is the part media planners should watch. The 2027-28 calendar becomes a test of franchise spacing and audience segmentation, not just volume. Ellison pointed to his Paramount record: overdelivering on synergies with $2.7 billion, doubling the slate to 15 films annually and greenlighting four new series.
Source: Deadline
