Jon M. Chu signs 3-year first-look producing deal with Paramount

Filmmaker Jon M. Chu is preparing to launch a new three-year first-look producing partnership with Paramount Pictures and Paramount Television Studios. The deal begins Jan. 2, 2026 and positions his company Electric Somewhere within the studio’s film and television divisions. The agreement gives Paramount the first opportunity to evaluate Chu’s upcoming scripted pitches which are currently in active development.

The news comes as Paramount continues its attempt to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery which would bring HBO into the same corporate structure and strengthen its position against competitors like Netflix in the fight for premium film and series talent.

The multi-year deal gives Paramount priority access to Electric Somewhere’s film and television concepts as they move from early development into formal pitching. Chu will work with Paramount Pictures co-chairs Dana Goldberg and Josh Greenstein along with Motion Picture Group president Don Granger who will oversee feature-level evaluation. On the television side, Paramount Television Studios President Matt Thunell will guide series development as Electric Somewhere establishes offices on the Paramount lot to support writing, preproduction and long-range planning.

Chu just completed production on the two-part adaptation of “Wicked” earlier this year, a large-scale project that required coordination across multiple departments and extensive musical design. His notable credits also include “In the Heights” and “Crazy Rich Asians,” films that helped raise expectations for studio-backed projects led by Asian and Asian American performers. Chu’s move to Paramount places him in a position to shape a multi-year pipeline of studio-level projects at both feature and series scale.