“Former Activision Blizzard CEO Claims WoW Film Disruption Hindered Game Development”
By “It was among the most dreadful films I’ve ever witnessed.”
Former Activision Blizzard CEO
During a conversation on the Grit podcast, Kotick expressed his dissatisfaction with Blizzard’s effort to transform the Warcraft MMO into a cinematic triumph, explaining that the project had proven to be a “significant distraction” for the company, ultimately leading to delays in World of Warcraft game updates.
So, why did Kotick permit it all to occur? It appears that the agreement to produce the film had already been established before Activision acquired Blizzard in 2008.
“The World of Warcraft movie… I believed was a dreadful concept,” Kotick stated. “They had finalized the agreement before we owned the company. It consumed countless resources and diverted their attention.
“Consider all the individuals who create video games for a living, and now they have an opportunity to produce a movie. They were involved in casting, and they were on set… it’s simply a gigantic distraction. Our expansions were delayed, patches weren’t completed on schedule.”
Legendary Blizzard developer Chris Metzen experienced burnout from the project, and Kotick eventually convinced him to return to Blizzard years later after pleading with him to come back.
“And the film was awful,” Kotick remarked. “It was among the most dreadful films I’ve ever witnessed.”
Plans were in place to develop a full World of Warcraft film trilogy, but those plans were abandoned after the film underperformed at the US box office.
“You have what amounts to the priciest lore wiki ever created,” former editor Oli Welsh stated in Eurogam