Issa Rae Just Leveled Up Again: The Paramount Deal That Could Shape What We’re Watching Next

Issa Rae’s career has always moved like a strategy, not a streak.

Even when the industry tried to treat her like a “moment,” she kept building like she was planning a decade ahead: create the work, own the pipeline, bring your people with you, then expand the kind of stories that get funded in the first place. That’s why this latest move matters, not just for Issa fans, but for anybody paying attention to who gets to be a real power player in Hollywood.

This week, multiple outlets reported that Issa Rae has signed a three-year first-look deal with Paramount to develop film and television projects through her Hoorae banner. On paper, that sounds like standard industry business. In reality, it’s a signal: Paramount wants creator-led IP that actually lands with audiences, and Issa Rae is one of the few people who can deliver culture, comedy, heart, and conversation without chasing trends.

And if you remember her previous deal history, this isn’t her “first big bag.” It’s her next chess move.

What’s confirmed about the deal

Here’s what’s being widely reported:

• It’s a three-year first-look producing deal that covers both film and TV.

• It includes Paramount Pictures and Paramount Television Studios.

• Rae will work closely with leadership across both divisions, including Paramount Pictures co-chairs Dana Goldberg and Josh Greenstein, Paramount Television Studios president Matt Thunell, and Motion Picture Group president Don Granger.

• The deal reportedly kicks off this month.

Issa also shared a statement about the partnership, framing it as a “next chapter” focused on telling stories “for and by” diverse communities that have supported her work.

That last part is very Issa: it’s not just about being included in the room. It’s about controlling what gets made after you’re in it.

What “first-look” really means (and why it’s a big deal)

Hollywood loves titles that sound cute but carry serious power.

A first-look deal generally means a studio gets the first opportunity to consider and acquire projects a creator develops. It’s not always “exclusive” in the way an overall deal can be, but it still puts a major company in the front seat for whatever that creator is building next.

Translation: Paramount is betting that Issa Rae’s next wave of ideas is worth getting early access to.

And from Paramount’s perspective, it’s not hard to see why.

Issa Rae’s track record is the whole reason Paramount is calling

Issa Rae isn’t just “the girl from Insecure.” She’s the blueprint for how internet-born creators become full-scale studio forces without losing their voice.

Her rise started with The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl, which helped prove (back when people acted like Black women weren’t “relatable”) that there was a huge audience for stories centered on Black women living messy, funny, real lives.

Then Insecure became more than a hit. It became a cultural anchor: the music, the friendship dynamics, the dating honesty, the way it made Black Los Angeles feel textured instead of tokenized. That show didn’t just entertain people—it shifted what networks believed could sell.

After that, Issa did what smart creators do: she built infrastructure.

Through Hoorae, she expanded into scripted, unscripted, documentary work, and projects that put more voices on screen and behind the camera. Her producer credits include work connected to:

• A Black Lady Sketch Show (produced/executive produced)

• Rap Sh!t (created/executive produced)

• Sweet Life: Los Angeles (unscripted series tied to her banner)

• Project Greenlight (revival tied to developing new talent)

• Seen & Heard: The History of Black Television (a documentary project where she’s credited as an executive producer)

Even when networks cancel shows, the larger pattern stays the same: Issa keeps creating lanes, then widening them.

So when Paramount signs her, they’re not just signing a talent. They’re signing a mini-studio with taste, relationships, and a proven ability to make people care.

The Warner Media era: why this move is even more interesting

Before this Paramount deal, Issa Rae had an eight-figure overall deal with WarnerMedia (reported as roughly around $40 million over five years in multiple coverage). That partnership helped fuel a slate of projects across HBO/HBO Max/Warner Bros., and it cemented Issa as someone who could develop across genres and formats.

So the question becomes: why shift now?

Nobody outside those rooms knows every detail, but here’s what’s clear from the industry trendline:

• Studios are tightening budgets while still needing reliable creators.

• Streamers are more cautious with long-term, expensive overall deals.

• Creator relationships are becoming more targeted: fewer blanket deals, more “first-look + specific partnership” structures.

• Paramount, in particular, has been building a creator pipeline that can feed both film and TV without the “one format only” limitations.

Issa Rae landing at Paramount fits that direction perfectly.

What Paramount likely wants from Issa (and what Issa likely wants from Paramount)

Paramount’s angle

Paramount is chasing projects that can do at least one of these things:

• break through culturally

• build a franchise or repeatable format

• attract talent and audiences across platforms

• deliver prestige and profitability without feeling manufactured

Issa Rae’s work tends to do multiple at once. It’s not “safe,” but it’s reliable in the way studios care about: it resonates, it trends, it travels.

Issa’s angle

Issa Rae has always positioned herself as a builder, not just a performer. A deal like this gives her:

• a new development home with film + TV access

• leverage to package projects with talent she trusts

• room to expand Hoorae’s slate without being locked into one corporate ecosystem

• a pathway to scale, especially if Paramount is serious about backing diverse creators long-term (not just announcing them)

If you’re Issa, you don’t just want a check. You want the machine behind you to move correctly.

What we should watch for next

The fun part is speculating responsibly—without making stuff up.

Here’s what’s realistic to expect under a Paramount first-look:

1. A broader film slateIssa’s already been moving more into film-producing, and Paramount’s film side could give her the runway to develop commercial comedies, elevated dramas, and ensemble projects with strong cast packaging.

2. A new scripted series with “Insecure DNA” but a different lensNot a reboot. Not a copy. But something that captures the same emotional specificity while exploring a new world—different age group, different city, different subculture.

3. More projects that put other creators onIssa’s quiet superpower is that she doesn’t just create for herself. She builds ladders. Expect more “introducing” moments—new writers, new directors, new on-screen leads.

4. Unscripted and documentary work that feels culturally urgentShe’s already proven she can do this without it feeling like homework. If Paramount gives her space, this could be one of the most impactful parts of the deal.

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The bigger takeaway: Issa Rae is playing the long game, and it’s working

Hollywood loves to celebrate Black women when they’re “hot” and then disappear them the second the headlines cool down.

Issa Rae has outsmarted that cycle by becoming the headline and the infrastructure.

A three-year first-look deal at Paramount isn’t just industry news. It’s a reminder: ownership and access matter, but so does staying nimble. Issa knows when to build deep partnerships—and when to pivot to the next platform that can carry her slate forward.

And if Paramount is smart, they won’t treat this like a press release win. They’ll treat it like what it is: a chance to back one of the most consistent creative engines in the business.

Because Issa Rae doesn’t just make shows.

She makes lanes.

Sources

• Variety — “Issa Rae Sets Film and Television Deal at Paramount” (Jan. 2026). (Variety)

• TheWrap — “Issa Rae Inks First-Look Deal With Paramount to Produce Film and TV” (Jan. 14, 2026). (TheWrap)

• Yahoo Entertainment — summary coverage of the Paramount first-look deal (Jan. 2026). (Yahoo)

• TheWrap — “Issa Rae Signs 8-Figure Multiyear TV and Film Deal at WarnerMedia” (Mar. 24, 2021). (TheWrap)

• Essence — coverage of Issa Rae’s WarnerMedia deal (Mar. 24, 2021). (Essence)

• WBD Press Room — HBO documentary “Seen & Heard: The History of Black Television” (Aug. 28, 2025). (press.wbd.com)