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Paramount Primal picks up fantasy epic Tower Defense from Divergent scribe. Can Paramount find its own fantasy epic like, The Odyssey? Paramount Primal just acquired Tower Defense, a medieval fantasy spin on Assault on Precinct 13! By MarkJulian - Aug 17, 2026 03:08 PM EST Paramount is reportedly looking to find its own version of The Odyssey as the studio is preparing to create an original fantasy epic. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Evan Daugherty (Snow White and the Huntsman, Divergent, Tomb Raider) has sold his original screenplay, Tower Defense, to Paramount Primal - which is the low-budget division of the main studio. The title should be familair to gamers as that is a subgenre where players build territories or defense towers and must protect their base from wave, after wave of enemies. Movie fans should look to The Battle of Helm's Deep from The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers for an example of what Tower Defense could be about. The project is described as "a medieval and supernatural fantasy twist on John Carpenter's classic 1976 siege thriller Assault on Precinct 13." Given that premise, the film will likely see a mismatched group of defenders or rival armies, forced to defend and protect a castle or strategic fort from a night-long siege by your standard mythological forces like trolls, orcs, goblins, and perhaps even a lich or two. Assault on Precinct 13 forced a cop and a convicted killer to arm up together just to stay alive. Swap out the police station for a medieval tower, and you've likley got an honorable captain handing broadswords and spellbooks to the cutthroats, bandits, and rogue sorcerers. Founded in late 2025, you can think of Paramount Primal as the parent studio's home for high-concept genre movies that don't cost a fortune to make. It is essentially Paramount's answer to Universal's Blumhouse or Warner Bros.' New Line. The "specialty" label means leans budgets but more creative freedom. Paramount Primal in particular is said to be focused on thrillers, horror, sci-fi, dark comedies, and action flicks that take enough creative risks to punch way above their weight class at the box office if they can find an audience. In addition to Tower Defense, Paramount Primal is also developing Boys for Life; a dark R-rated comedy from director Tyler Falbo, and Sweet Spot; a high-concept thriller spec from writing duo Nic Curcio and Kirby Gladstein. As The Odyssey continues its conquering of the box office with a staggering $1.29 billion global run and counting, Hollywood is officially obsessed with mythic epics again. Studios are scrambling to greenlight grounded fantasy projects, with Legendary fast-tracking an adaptation of the Epic of Gilgamesh and Sony snapping up James Islington's Hierarchy book series, which is a fantasy universe centered on The Fall of Troy. Meanwhile, The Jim Henson Company is going the indie route to finance a live-action Beowulf movie starring Jeff Bridges (The Big Lebowski, Tron: Ares) and Dave Bautista (Guardians of the Galaxy, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery).

Paramount says it secured all global clearances to close Warner Bros. Deal... Except for that pesky lawsuit. David Ellison says that they are offering "commitments and concessions" to try and get the deal over the line. August 14, 2026 1:09pm Paramount Skydance says that it has now been cleared by all global regulators to complete its $111 billion deal for Warner Bros. Discovery... with that antitrust lawsuit filed by the 12 attorneys general now serving as the sole roadblock to the deal being done. The company says that the government of Mexico approved the deal Friday, meaning that 68 countries have now signed off on the mega-merger. "We are grateful that competition authorities in nearly 70 jurisdictions worldwide have independently and thoroughly reviewed this transaction and reached the same conclusion: it is pro-competitive, pro-consumer and pro-worker," said David Ellison, the CEO of Paramount, in a statement Friday. "Despite this overwhelming global consensus, the litigation brought by the state of California and 11 other state AGs remains the final obstacle to completing a combination that will create a stronger competitor with greater capacity to invest in premium content, support creative talent and workers and deliver more high-quality entertainment to audiences." The company says that it is asking the AGs to negotiate "in good faith," with Ellison suggesting that it is prepared to offer commitments to get the deal over the line (what those are remains to be seen). "While we remain confident that the law and the facts are on our side, we have offered commitments and concessions and remain open to working constructively with the state AGs to find a path forward in the interest of our employees and the creative community in California and across the world - just as we have with the regulators in 68 countries worldwide," said Ellison. The lawsuit and the threat of an extended trial have splintered Hollywood's unions, with some urging some sort of settlement with strict consent decrees and others like the Writers Guild of America wanting nothing less than a total block. It has also made many California politicians nervous, with Governor Gavin Newsom said to be quietly pushing for a deal and likely successor Xavier Becerra also supporting a compromise. Ellison, of course, has threatened to leave California if the lawsuit moved forward, perhaps moving Paramount's corporate offices to Texas or Tennessee or Georgia, though many in the industry view it as an empty threat given the challenge of running an entertainment business so far from the industry's epicenter. But with Paramount having cleared the deal in regulators around the world, the urgency to resolve the lawsuit only grows stronger by the day, and in its statement Friday, the company continued to ramp up public pressure to get the AGs to the table. "The unwarranted eight-plus month additional delay for a trial beyond the engagement of the last 9 months will impose needless costs from penalty fees, litigation expenses and business disruption," the company states. "As a business with many stakeholders, including pension and state retirement funds, Paramount is required to consider how it can absorb the unnecessary additional financial costs while preserving the longer-term strength of the combined company."

Paramount reported second-quarter results showing continued growth in streaming and studio segments. Revenue reached $6.91 billion, slightly beating analyst estimates, whilst adjusted EBITDA of $1.10 billion exceeded expectations by 20.3%. CEO David Ellison attributed improved profitability to an expanded theatrical slate and double-digit subscriber growth for Paramount+. The company reaffirmed its full-year revenue guidance of $30 billion. During the earnings call, analysts focused on the pending Warner Bros. Discovery merger. Ellison expressed confidence in closing the transaction despite ongoing litigation risks. Questions also addressed streaming revenue sustainability and live sports strategy. CFO Dennis Cinelli highlighted the company's positive free cash flow outlook and sufficient liquidity to manage potential merger delays.