# G.I. Joe: The Movie
**G.I. Joe: The Movie** is a 1987 American animated feature that concludes the Sunbow Productions run of *G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero*, in which the [G.I. Joe](https://www.edgepedia.org/g-i-joe) team battles Cobra and the newly revealed ancient underground civilization Cobra-La. It was produced as a theatrical feature, the third Hasbro animated film of 1986–87 after *My Little Pony: The Movie* and *The Transformers: The Movie*, but was released direct-to-video on August 25, 1987 after its predecessors underperformed in theaters.[1](https://gijoe.army/cartoons/movie/) • [2](https://gijoe.army/movies/gi-joe-the-movie/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Premiere | August 25, 1987, direct-to-video; syndication premiere September 4, 1987, later split into a five-part miniseries[1](https://gijoe.army/cartoons/movie/) |
| Director and writers | Don Jurwich; screenplay by Ron Friedman, story editor Buzz Dixon[2](https://gijoe.army/movies/gi-joe-the-movie/) |
| Studios | Sunbow Productions, Marvel Productions, and Toei Animation (Japan); distributed by Celebrity Home Entertainment[1](https://gijoe.army/cartoons/movie/) |
| Runtime and rating | 93 minutes, rated PG[1](https://gijoe.army/cartoons/movie/) |
| Famous edit | Duke was scripted to die; after the Optimus Prime backlash, new dialogue redubbed his death into a coma over unchanged animation, and the funeral scene was cut[2](https://gijoe.army/movies/gi-joe-the-movie/) |
| Reception | 43% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer (7 reviews), 66% audience score with 10,000+ ratings, 7.0 on IMDb[2](https://gijoe.army/movies/gi-joe-the-movie/) |
| Restoration | The 2010 Shout! Factory Blu-ray restored the film and made its production history public, with Dixon's commentary and the original screenplay[2](https://gijoe.army/movies/gi-joe-the-movie/) |
## Spoilers
### Story and Cobra-La
The plot opens with the Joes foiling a Cobra attack on the [Statue of Liberty](https://www.edgepedia.org/statue-of-liberty), set to an extended version of the series' main theme. Pythona, a woman from the secret civilization Cobra-La, infiltrates the Terror Drome and reveals to Serpentor that Cobra-La inspired Doctor Mindbender to create him through dream manipulation; at her urging, Serpentor plans to capture the Joes' Broadcast Energy Transmitter. The film ends with the Joes invading Cobra-La, defeating its ruler Golobulus, and the civilization collapsing in on itself.[1](https://gijoe.army/cartoons/movie/)
Cobra-La, a civilization driven underground during the Ice Age, was the film's most divisive invention, revealing that Cobra had been a front for an ancient race of snake-people.[2](https://gijoe.army/movies/gi-joe-the-movie/) The name was not intended to be final: it was a placeholder in the script's drafts, borrowed from James Hilton's 1933 novel *Lost Horizon* (which features the fabled city [Shangri-La](https://www.edgepedia.org/shangri-la)), but Hasbro executives liked it and forced the writers to keep it.[1](https://gijoe.army/cartoons/movie/) Dixon has said Hasbro declined to make toys of the Cobra-La characters such as Nemesis Enforcer, telling the writers to do whatever they wanted with them, and that for a long time the film was considered an alternate-timeline story rather than official canon.[5](https://popheist.com/buzz-dixon-gi-joe-the-movie-interview)
## Production and intended release
Hasbro greenlit the film during the height of the Sunbow cartoon's first two seasons as a feature to cap the animated era, the third of three planned theatrical films alongside *My Little Pony: The Movie* and *The Transformers: The Movie*.[2](https://gijoe.army/movies/gi-joe-the-movie/) Ron Friedman wrote the screenplay, dated February 26, 1986, with Buzz Dixon as story editor; the script credits Sunbow Productions with Joe Bacal, Tom Griffin, and Margaret Loesch as producers, in association with Marvel Productions.[3](https://tvwriting.co.uk/tv_scripts/Collections/Animation/G.I._Joe_A_Real_American_Hero/G.I._Joe_The_Movie.pdf) Animation was handled by [Toei Animation](https://www.edgepedia.org/toei-animation) in Japan under director Don Jurwich, with a darker, more violent tone than the television series.[2](https://gijoe.army/movies/gi-joe-the-movie/)
**The reroute to video.** Production delays pushed the film past *The Transformers: The Movie*, which opened in theaters in August 1986. [Optimus Prime](https://www.edgepedia.org/optimus-prime)'s on-screen death in that film triggered a fierce backlash from children and parents, and with the [Transformers](https://www.edgepedia.org/transformers) film underperforming, Hasbro rerouted *G.I. Joe: The Movie* from theatrical release to direct-to-video.[2](https://gijoe.army/movies/gi-joe-the-movie/) • [4](https://intanibase.com/iad_entries/entry?shortID=72045) The film premiered on home video on August 25, 1987, and aired in syndication beginning September 4, 1987, first as a feature and later split into a five-part miniseries within the series' syndication package.[1](https://gijoe.army/cartoons/movie/) It served as the canonical conclusion of the Sunbow run before the property moved to DiC.[1](https://gijoe.army/cartoons/movie/)
## The Duke death edit
In the original script, Duke dies in battle after being wounded by a snake spear hurled by Serpentor. According to the film's own production history, this beat inspired the death of Optimus Prime in the simultaneously produced *Transformers* film; when that death provoked a severe backlash from younger fans, Hasbro had Duke's death edited into a coma.[1](https://gijoe.army/cartoons/movie/) Rather than being re-animated, the scene was given a redub: fresh dialogue converts his death into a coma while the footage stays untouched, and the funeral sequence was removed altogether.[2](https://gijoe.army/movies/gi-joe-the-movie/) In Buzz Dixon's words, Duke's death is unmistakable to anyone who views the images while ignoring the audio track.[2](https://gijoe.army/movies/gi-joe-the-movie/)
## Voice cast
[Don Johnson](https://www.edgepedia.org/don-johnson) voiced Lt. Falcon and [Burgess Meredith](https://www.edgepedia.org/burgess-meredith) voiced Golobulus; the cast also included [Sgt. Slaughter](https://www.edgepedia.org/sgt-slaughter) as himself, Chris Latta as Cobra Commander, Michael Bell as Duke, and B.J. Ward as Scarlett.[1](https://gijoe.army/cartoons/movie/) The film introduces a group of rookie Joes, including Falcon, Tunnel Rat, Law, Big Lob, Chuckles, and Jinx.[1](https://gijoe.army/cartoons/movie/)
## Reception and afterlife
The professional critical sample is thin for a 1987 direct-to-video release: the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer stands at 43 percent from 7 reviews, while the audience Popcornmeter sits at 66 percent from more than 10,000 ratings, and IMDb shows 7.0 out of 10.[2](https://gijoe.army/movies/gi-joe-the-movie/) Audience commentary has consistently praised the animation and the opening Statue of Liberty sequence, even from viewers who find the Cobra-La storyline baffling.[2](https://gijoe.army/movies/gi-joe-the-movie/)
The film's reputation was revived by home video. In the United Kingdom it was retitled *Action Force: The Movie* to match local branding.[2](https://gijoe.army/movies/gi-joe-the-movie/) The 2010 Shout! Factory Blu-ray gave the film a proper restoration, with Dixon's commentary and a printable copy of the original screenplay, and made its troubled production history public.[2](https://gijoe.army/movies/gi-joe-the-movie/) In 2022, Fathom Events gave the film a special two-day theatrical release for its 35th anniversary, its first wide theatrical showing.[4](https://intanibase.com/iad_entries/entry?shortID=72045) The film remains available on streaming services including Amazon Prime Video, The Roku Channel, and Tubi.[6](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/g-i-joe-the-movie)
## References
1. [G.I. Joe: The Movie (1987) – Cartoons, G.I. Joe Army](https://gijoe.army/cartoons/movie/)
2. [G.I. Joe: The Movie (1987) – The Definitive Movie Dossier, G.I. Joe Army](https://gijoe.army/movies/gi-joe-the-movie/)
3. [G.I. Joe: The Movie screenplay (February 26, 1986), TV Writing](https://tvwriting.co.uk/tv_scripts/Collections/Animation/G.I._Joe_A_Real_American_Hero/G.I._Joe_The_Movie.pdf)
4. [G.I. Joe: The Movie (1987) – The Internet Animation Database](https://intanibase.com/iad_entries/entry?shortID=72045)
5. ['G.I. Joe' Story Editor Buzz Dixon Is Embracing the Movie Now, Pop Heist](https://popheist.com/buzz-dixon-gi-joe-the-movie-interview)
6. [G.I. Joe: The Movie streaming: where to watch online?, JustWatch](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/g-i-joe-the-movie)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Films by genre, form, and subject › Animated and short films › Animated films by source material and subject › Films based on comics and games*
*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license