As I exclusively reported in October, Warner Bros. is now backing Nancy Meyers’ new film, tentatively titled “Paris Paramount,” though the original star-studded cast will be reshuffled. She’s quietly been recasting roles, aiming to start production in early 2026 in Los Angeles. The budget is now less, around $100M, but remains enormous for a rom-com, with much of it reportedly going to the A-list cast’s salaries.
Today, all that was confirmed. The previous iteration of the cast had Penélope Cruz and Owen Wilson attached, and they’ll remain aboard, but added in are Kieran Culkin, Jude Law, and Emma Mackey. Two of them seemingly replace Scarlett Johansson and Michael Fassbender, who have now bowed out.
Warner Bros. has set a Christmas Day 2027 theatrical release for the film, which will be Meyers’ first time behind the camera in 11 years; her last movie, also backed by Warner Bros., was the Anne Hathaway and Robert De Niro-starring comedy “The Intern” (underrated!).
Don’t ask why Meyers needs that much money to make “Paris Paramount” — nobody could quite figure it out — but I gather at least half the budget would be going to her A-list cast’s salaries.
Romantic comedies tend to be mid-budget affairs at best, and one look at the film’s synopsis doesn’t really indicate why this one needed to be as expensive as “Dune.”
A young writer-director falls in love with a producer. The pair make several successful films before breaking up, both romantically and professionally. They are forced back together when a new, great project arises.
The project is semi-autobiographical, as it parallels Meyers’ own life. She and fellow writer-producer Charles Shyer had a longtime romantic and professional partnership, working on films such as “Private Benjamin,” “Baby Boom,” “The Parent Trap,” and “Father of the Bride.”
Meyers was one of the most in-demand filmmakers of the early 2000s, perfecting a crowd-pleasing formula that delivered hits like “What Women Want,” “Something’s Gotta Give,” “The Holiday,” and “It’s Complicated.” Box-office gold.