# G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra
*G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra* is a 2009 American action film directed by [Stephen Sommers](https://www.edgepedia.org/stephen-sommers), based on the Hasbro G.I. Joe toy line, in which an elite military team called [G.I. Joe](https://www.edgepedia.org/g-i-joe) battles the arms dealer Destro and the Cobra organization to stop a stolen high-tech weapon from being used against the world.[1](https://www.paramount.com/movies/gi-joe-the-rise-of-cobra) It was produced by [Paramount Pictures](https://www.edgepedia.org/paramount-pictures) with Spyglass Entertainment and Hasbro, released in the United States on August 7, 2009, and rated PG-13.[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/gi_joe_the_rise_of_cobra)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | August 7, 2009 (wide, United States); earliest release August 5, 2009 in Belgium[3](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt1046173/) |
| Director and writers | Stephen Sommers; screenplay by Stuart Beattie, David Elliot, and Paul Lovett, with Michael B. Gordon also credited[4](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/64893) |
| Rating and runtime | PG-13; Paramount lists 118 minutes, Box Office Mojo lists 1 hr 58 min[1](https://www.paramount.com/movies/gi-joe-the-rise-of-cobra) • [3](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt1046173/) |
| Box office | $302,469,017 worldwide on a $175,000,000 budget; $150,201,498 domestic; $54,713,046 opening weekend[3](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt1046173/) |
| Critical reception | 33% Tomatometer (166 reviews), 50% Popcornmeter, Metacritic 32 from 25 critics, B+ CinemaScore[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/gi_joe_the_rise_of_cobra) • [5](https://gijoe.army/movies/the-rise-of-cobra/) |
| Lead cast | Channing Tatum (Duke), Dennis Quaid (General Hawk), Sienna Miller (Ana/The Baroness), Christopher Eccleston (McCullen/Destro), Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Rex/The Doctor), Marlon Wayans (Ripcord)[6](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/g-i-joe-the-rise-of-cobra) |
| Music | Original score by Alan Silvestri[5](https://gijoe.army/movies/the-rise-of-cobra/) |
## Spoilers
### Premise
The film follows G.I. Joe, described by Paramount as a top-secret elite strike force drawing operatives from around the globe. After Cobra steals a high-tech secret weapon, the team races to stop the organization from using it and plunging the world into chaos.[1](https://www.paramount.com/movies/gi-joe-the-rise-of-cobra) Other synopses place the action from the Egyptian desert to deep below the polar ice caps, where the Joes use next-generation spy and military equipment against the corrupt arms dealer Destro and the growing Cobra threat.[7](https://watch.afi.com/movie/g-i-joe-the-rise-of-cobra) The cast includes [Ray Park](https://www.edgepedia.org/ray-park) as Snake Eyes, Lee Byung-hun as [Storm Shadow](https://www.edgepedia.org/storm-shadow), Rachel Nichols as Scarlett, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje as Heavy Duty, Saïd Taghmaoui as Breaker, Arnold Vosloo as Zartan, and [Jonathan Pryce](https://www.edgepedia.org/jonathan-pryce) as the U.S. President.[6](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/g-i-joe-the-rise-of-cobra)
## Development and production
**A six-year path to the screen.** In 2003, producer [Lorenzo di Bonaventura](https://www.edgepedia.org/lorenzo-di-bonaventura), looking for a film about advanced military technology, took a call from Hasbro's Brian Goldner suggesting the G.I. Joe property; Don Murphy had considered it earlier but moved on to [Transformers](https://www.edgepedia.org/transformers). From 2004 to 2007 the script passed through several hands, including Michael B. Gordon, then Paul Lovett and David Elliot, then a heavily altered Skip Woods draft that leaked online and drew fan anger for sidelining Cobra.[5](https://gijoe.army/movies/the-rise-of-cobra/)
In August 2007 Paramount hired Stephen Sommers, brought in Stuart Beattie for a fresh script, and signed Larry Hama, the writer behind the franchise's comics, as creative consultant to pull the film back toward the source material.[5](https://gijoe.army/movies/the-rise-of-cobra/) [Principal photography](https://www.edgepedia.org/principal-photography) began in February 2008 in Los Angeles, where a Downey soundstage housed the Pit, Destro's Arctic base, and submarine interiors; the shoot then moved to Prague's Barrandov Studios.[5](https://gijoe.army/movies/the-rise-of-cobra/) Mitchell Amundsen served as cinematographer, and the film was edited by Bob Ducsay, Jim May, and Kelly Matsumoto.[4](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/64893)
Hasbro, which co-produced the film, launched a new "Rise of the Cobra" toy line alongside the release, with the film's actors scanned for the figures.[8](https://corp.hasbro.com/news-releases/news-release-details/hasbro-deploys-new-gi-joe-toys-prior-gi-joe-rise-cobra-landing) • [9](https://ttabvue.uspto.gov/ttabvue/ttabvue-91255366-OPP-54.pdf) The G.I. Joe brand itself dated to 1964, when Hasbro introduced the 11.5-inch action figure that by 2004 had sold more than 400 million figures.[10](https://www.museumofplay.org/toys/g-i-joe/)
## Reception
**Critics and audiences diverged.** The film holds a 33% Tomatometer from 166 reviews and a 50% Popcornmeter from more than 250,000 audience ratings on Rotten Tomatoes, and a Metascore of 32 from 25 critics on Metacritic, labeled generally unfavorable.[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/gi_joe_the_rise_of_cobra) • [11](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/gi-joe-the-rise-of-cobra/) Opening-night audiences graded it B+ on [CinemaScore](https://www.edgepedia.org/cinemascore).[5](https://gijoe.army/movies/the-rise-of-cobra/) Paramount declined to screen the film for critics before release.[5](https://gijoe.army/movies/the-rise-of-cobra/)
The critics consensus on Rotten Tomatoes calls it "largely a cartoonish, over-the-top action fest propelled by silly writing, inconsistent visual effects, and merely passable performances."[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/gi_joe_the_rise_of_cobra) Roger Ebert wrote that the movie was preoccupied with "incomprehensible wall-to-wall computer-generated special effects" with no clear sense of spatial relationships in the action.[5](https://gijoe.army/movies/the-rise-of-cobra/) More favorable notices included [The A.V. Club](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-a-v-club)'s 75 score, which called it an unchallenging but exciting and consistently well-managed thrill ride, and the Los Angeles Times, which praised the brisk action and the design of Cobra's headquarters under the polar ice cap.[11](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/gi-joe-the-rise-of-cobra/)
**Box office.** The film opened to $54,713,046 domestically and finished with $150,201,498 in the United States and $152,267,519 internationally, for a worldwide total of $302,469,017 against a $175,000,000 budget.[3](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt1046173/) Its strongest international markets included South Korea ($15,940,289), the United Kingdom ($10,313,105), and Russia/CIS ($9,129,805).[3](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt1046173/)
## Legacy
The film launched a live-action franchise. A sequel, *G.I. Joe: Retaliation*, followed in 2013 with [Dwayne Johnson](https://www.edgepedia.org/dwayne-johnson) attempting a soft reboot, and a further reboot, *Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins*, was released in 2021.[12](https://www.gamesradar.com/entertainment/action-movies/paramount-hire-chronicle-scribe-max-landis-to-write-a-new-gi-joe-script/) Paramount has since pursued additional reboots, including a script from [Max Landis](https://www.edgepedia.org/max-landis) and a project led by [Danny McBride](https://www.edgepedia.org/danny-mcbride) with Bradley Cooper set to play Duke, described as suspense and action rather than comedy.[13](https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/movies/bradley-cooper-duke-danny-mcbride-g-i-joe-movie-paramount/) A Transformers/G.I. Joe crossover was teased at the end of *Transformers: Rise of the Beasts* in 2023, though no crossover film had moved forward as of the most recent reports.[12](https://www.gamesradar.com/entertainment/action-movies/paramount-hire-chronicle-scribe-max-landis-to-write-a-new-gi-joe-script/)
## References
1. [G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, Paramount Pictures](https://www.paramount.com/movies/gi-joe-the-rise-of-cobra)
2. [G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/gi_joe_the_rise_of_cobra)
3. [G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, Box Office Mojo](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt1046173/)
4. [G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (2009), AFI Catalog](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/64893)
5. [G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (2009), The Definitive Movie Dossier](https://gijoe.army/movies/the-rise-of-cobra/)
6. [G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, JustWatch](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/g-i-joe-the-rise-of-cobra)
7. [G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, American Film Institute](https://watch.afi.com/movie/g-i-joe-the-rise-of-cobra)
8. [Hasbro Deploys New G.I. Joe Toys Prior to G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra Landing in Theaters, Hasbro](https://corp.hasbro.com/news-releases/news-release-details/hasbro-deploys-new-gi-joe-toys-prior-gi-joe-rise-cobra-landing)
9. [Notice of Reliance No. 4, USPTO TTABVUE](https://ttabvue.uspto.gov/ttabvue/ttabvue-91255366-OPP-54.pdf)
10. [G.I. Joe, National Toy Hall of Fame, The Strong](https://www.museumofplay.org/toys/g-i-joe/)
11. [G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/gi-joe-the-rise-of-cobra/)
12. [Paramount hire Chronicle scribe Max Landis to write a new GI Joe script, GamesRadar](https://www.gamesradar.com/entertainment/action-movies/paramount-hire-chronicle-scribe-max-landis-to-write-a-new-gi-joe-script/)
13. [Bradley Cooper to Star in Danny McBride's 'G.I. Joe' Movie at Paramount, TheWrap](https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/movies/bradley-cooper-duke-danny-mcbride-g-i-joe-movie-paramount/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Franchise and series entries as standalone works › Television-, game-, and toy-derived film entries › Toy and merchandise adaptations*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 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