Kotick Criticizes Warcraft Film: 'One of the Worst Movies Ever'

In a recent interview on Grit, former Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick did not mince words when discussing Universal's 2016 adaptation of Activision Blizzard's Warcraft. Kotick, who led the company for 32 years before stepping down in December 2023, called the film "one of the worst movies I've ever seen."

Kotick went on to say that the movie had a significant impact on the development of World of Warcraft, describing it as a "distraction" for the team. He suggested that the film was partly responsible for the departure of veteran designer Chris Metzen in 2016. "Chris Metzen was — and is, to me — the heart and soul of creativity of the company," Kotick remarked, emphasizing Metzen's importance to the company.

According to Kotick, the film's production diverted resources and attention from the game's development. "It took a lot of resources and distracted \[developers at Blizzard\]," he explained. "You think about all these people who make video games for a living, and now they have the chance \[to\], like, make a movie. They're helping with the casting, and they're on the set, and... it's just a huge distraction."

The impact of this distraction was evident in delayed expansions and patches that weren't completed on time. Kotick's strong disapproval of the movie was clear: "The movie was terr— it was one of the worst movies I've ever seen."

While the prospects for a sequel to the Warcraft movie seem dim, director Duncan Jones shared his vision for a trilogy in 2020. The planned arc would have focused on "the fulfilling of Durotan’s promise to give his people a new home."

Despite underperforming in North America with a domestic gross of just $47 million, Warcraft found success internationally, particularly in China. It temporarily became the highest-grossing video game adaptation ever, earning a total of $439 million worldwide. However, Legendary Pictures considered it a financial disappointment due to its hefty budget.

Kotick noted that Metzen took the film's failure personally, which contributed to his decision to leave and start a board game company. Kotick later "begged" Metzen to return as a consultant, though Metzen was critical of the plans for the next two expansions, suggesting they needed to be "redone" entirely.

Despite limited interaction after Metzen's return, Kotick praised his influence on the latest expansion, saying, "The last expansion, he had his fingertips all over it. It's excellent. The next one is going to be great."

Indeed, the impact of Metzen's return was felt in the critically acclaimed expansion World of Warcraft: The War Within, which our review lauded with a 9/10 score. We described it as "the best World of Warcraft has been on all fronts in many years, making this two-decade-old MMO feel fresh and thrilling again."