Taraji P. Henson will executive produce and star in the Paramount comedy “What Men Want,” which the studio has set for release on January 11, 2019.
The film, inspired by Nancy Meyers’ 2000 romantic comedy “What Women Want,” follows a female sports agent (Henson) who has been constantly boxed out by her male colleagues.
When she gains the power to hear men’s thoughts, she is able to shift the paradigm to her advantage as she races to sign the NBA’s next superstar.
The new film be produced by Will Packer and James Lopez; no director has yet been named.
Meyers’ original starred Mel Gibson as a chauvinistic ad executive who gains the ability to hear what women are thinking after a fluke accident. He tries to use it to his advantage on a woman (Helen Hunt) who got a promotion over him — but winds up falling for her instead.
The film became a giant hit, earning nearly $183 million domestically — and another $191 million in overseas box office.
[powergridprofile powerrank=”950″ node=”251227″ type=”person” path=”http://powergrid.thewrap.com/person/taraji-p-henson” title=”Taraji P. Henson” image=”taraji_p._henson_1.jpg”]
Henson, who stars in the Fox hit “Empire,” has kept busy on the big screen as well. She earned widespread acclaim for her role in last year’s “Hidden Figures,” and is due to appear next year in the crime thriller “Proud Mary,” Tyler Perry’s wronged-woman drama “Acrimony” and the civil rights drama “The Best of Enemies.”