‘Shout It Out Loud’: Nick Jonas to Play Paul Stanley in Upcoming KISS Biopic!!

Another iconic rock band is getting the biopic treatment. Nick Jonas is set to star as KISS lead singer Paul Stanley in Shout It Out Loud. The project will be directed by action maven McG, in what will be the director’s first biographical film since the 2006 sports drama We Are Marshall. Deadline reports that the film is expected to begin production in late 2025 or early 2026.

Jonas will reportedly do his own singing in the film, which will dramatize the formation and early years of the band before they became arena-rock legends. Jonas certainly has the experience to do so, having risen to fame with the Jonas Brothers band, and later performed solo, with his own band, Nick Jonas & the Administration, and on stage (much like Stanley, who starred as The Phantom of the Opera in Toronto in the 1990s). However, he will apparently need some time to practice replicating Stanley‘s unique vocalizations. That will give McG time to cast bassist Gene Simmons, who will be the film’s other lead character, as well as bandmates Ace Frehley and Peter Criss.

Who Is KISS?

Formed in New York City in 1973, KISS rose to fame in the late 1970s, backing their hard-rocking tunes with a stage persona unlike any other. Their identities concealed beneath makeup, the band took on comic-book-styled personae, and accompanied their concerts with eruptions of flame, smoke, and blood. They soon became pop culture icons, assembling a devoted fanbase referred to as the Kiss Army. The band’s willingness to license their name for any sort of merchandise imaginable is legendary; one of their more notable stunts included a KISS comic book from Marvel that featured the band’s blood mixed into the comic’s ink. They’ve also graced the screen a number of times, with cameos in films like Detroit Rock City and Why Him?, and guest appearances on shows like Millennium, Family Guy, and That ’70s Show. They even starred in their own 1978 TV special, Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park, in which the band used their superpowers to defeat a Scooby-Doo-style supervillain (Anthony Zerbe).

Shout It Out Loud has been in the works for some time: the most recent draft of the script is by Darren Lemke (Shazam!). It will be produced by McG, KISS members Simmons and Stanley, plus Mark Canton, Doc McGhee, Leigh Ann Burton, Mary Viola, David Hopwood, Courtney Solomon, Dorothy Canton, Universal Music Group‘s Jody Gerson, and Polygam‘s David Blackman.