Adobe Premiere hangs on launch on macOS

Last updated on Jan 7, 2026

Find out how to resolve the issue when Premiere only shows the Permissions dialog box and freezes on macOS devices.

When Premiere launches on macOS, it checks if it has permissions to access these three folders- Desktop, Documents, and Downloads. If it does not have permissions, Premiere displays a dialog box requesting access to the folders.

If you choose to Deny or Open Preferences, Premiere quits. This error occurs because if you grant permission, Premiere needs to restart. If you don't give permission, Premiere can't run and must quit. 

Denied or revoked the permissions

You selected Don’t Allow to the initial macOS prompt for permission or you revoked permission for Premiere from System Preferences.

If you are experiencing a hang and have either denied or revoked the permissions, perform the following steps:

Quit Premiere.

Open System Preferences > Security & Privacy > Privacy > Files and Folders, locate Premiere [version], and check the boxes for any folders listed there.

Relaunch Premiere.

Corrupted system database for permissions

If the permissions appear correct in System Preferences > Security & Privacy > Privacy > Files and Folders, but Premiere still shows a dialog about missing permissions, you may have a corrupted system database for permissions.

Uninstall Premiere.

Restart the system.

Install Premiere.