A Complete Unknown's Director Signs Major Deal With Paramount Pictures

James Mangold, the director of such hits as Ford v Ferrari, Logan, and A Complete Unknown, has reportedly signed an overall deal to produce new films for Paramount Pictures. Mangold has been nominated for an Oscar a total of five times, most recently for directing the Bob Dylan biopic starring Timothée Chalamet.

ᴅᴇᴀᴅline reported Mangold and Paramount’s new business deal today, following the studio winning a compeтιтive bidding war for the director’s upcoming movie High Side, again starring Chalamet, in August 2025. Paramount Co-Chairs Josh Greenstein and Dana Goldberg said in a statement:

James Mangold is one of the most talented filmmakers working today and we could not be more excited to welcome him to the Paramount family, starting with High Side and many more collaborations to come.

Mangold also made his own statement, saying:

I am very excited to begin this collaboration with David, Josh and Dana and everyone at Paramount. The enthusiasm they have demonstrated toward big screen films and the pᴀssion with which they have embraced my ideas for future projects is truly thrilling.

As noted, first up with this new collaboration between Mangold and the Skydance-owned studio is High Side, described as a motocross heist movie following a former MotoGP racer who is persuaded by his brother to form a crew and start robbing banks. High Side is adapted from a currently unpublished short story by Jaime Oliveira, who is writing the script.

How Many Movies Will James Mangold Make For Paramount?

Matt Damon and Christian Bale lean against a car in Ford v Ferrari. — Matt Damon and Christian Bale lean against a car in *Ford v Ferrari.*

The terms of Mangold’s new deal are scarce, making it unclear how many Paramount projects the director will undertake. An overall deal is an exclusive contract between a studio and a creator or another company, meaning that Paramount owns the rights to all Mangold’s projects for the immediate future.

Reports do not specify how long Mangold’s contract with Paramount will last, during which time all of his work will be financed by and belong to the studio, but it is presumably at least a few years. Paramount is likely hoping that it will end up with several тιтles in the same vein as some of James Mangold’s best movies, which vary in genre but are similar in tone and style.

What This Means For James Mangold & Paramount

Given Mangold’s track record with the Academy Awards, this could mean that Paramount will end up with a few serious Oscars contenders over the next several years. Mangold is locked into working exclusively for Paramount for the time being, but certainly has enough leeway in the industry to have only entered this agreement if he was enthusiastic about it, as his statement suggests.

It does, however, mean that some of Mangold’s other proposed projects are likely to be put on hold or will end up with new directors. The director was reportedly developing the Dawn of the Jedi movie for the Star Wars franchise, delving into the origins of the Force, as well as a Swamp Thing horror feature for DC Studios.

Both of these projects are part of established cinematic universes, which their respective studios are not going to share with Paramount. While fans may have been eager to see James Mangold‘s take on both Star Wars and DC, he may now be sticking with movies more like Ford v Ferrari and A Complete Unknown.