Kotick Criticizes Warcraft Film as 'One of the Worst'

In a revealing interview on Grit, former Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick, who led the company for 32 years before stepping down in December 2023, openly criticized Universal's 2016 adaptation of Activision Blizzard's Warcraft, calling it "one of the worst movies I've ever seen." Kotick expressed his belief that the film not only failed critically and commercially but also significantly impacted the development of World of Warcraft, describing it as a "distraction" for the team. He specifically cited the movie as a contributing factor to the departure of veteran designer Chris Metzen in 2016.

Kotick praised Metzen, calling him "the heart and soul of creativity of the company." He explained that Metzen's exit was influenced by burnout and the strain of the movie project, which had been greenlit before Activision acquired the company. Kotick lamented the diversion of resources and the disruption it caused, noting that "our expansions were late" and "patches weren't getting done on time."

Despite the Warcraft movie's domestic underperformance, earning just $47 million in North America, it achieved considerable success internationally, particularly in China, eventually grossing $439 million worldwide. However, Legendary Pictures considered it a financial disappointment due to its high production costs.

Kotick shared that Metzen took the movie's failure personally, which led to his departure to start a board game company. Kotick later "begged" Metzen to return as a consultant, though Metzen was critical of the plans for the subsequent expansions, insisting they needed to be "redone" entirely. Despite their limited interaction post-return, Kotick acknowledged Metzen's significant influence on the last expansion, which received high praise, including a 9/10 in our World of Warcraft The War Within review. 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."

While fans may never see a sequel to the Warcraft movie, director Duncan Jones had envisioned a trilogy that would have completed "the fulfilling of Durotan’s promise to give his people a new home."