Bobby Kotick Criticizes Warcraft Film as 'One of the Worst'

In a revealing interview on Grit, former Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick didn't hold back his thoughts on the 2016 Universal adaptation of Warcraft, describing it as "one of the worst movies I've ever seen." Kotick, who led the company for 32 years before stepping down in December 2023, elaborated on the film's detrimental impact on the development of World of Warcraft. He pointed out that the movie served as a significant distraction for the development team at Blizzard, contributing to the departure of veteran designer Chris Metzen in 2016.

Kotick praised Metzen, calling him "the heart and soul of creativity of the company," and explained that the designer left due to burnout. The decision to create the Warcraft movie was made before Activision owned the company, and Kotick believed it to be a "terrible idea." He highlighted how the project drained resources and disrupted the team's focus, leading to delays in game expansions and patches.

Despite the domestic underperformance of the Warcraft movie, which grossed only $47 million in North America, it achieved international success, becoming the most successful video game adaptation at the time, particularly in China. However, with a total of $439 million in earnings, Legendary Pictures considered it a failure due to its high budget.

Kotick shared that Metzen took the movie's reception personally before leaving to start a board game company. Later, Kotick persuaded Metzen to return to Blizzard as a consultant. However, Metzen was critical of the plans for the next two expansions, suggesting they needed a complete overhaul.

Reflecting on their relationship after Metzen's return, Kotick mentioned they hardly spoke, respecting Metzen's expertise in game design. He credited Metzen's significant influence on the last expansion, World of Warcraft: The War Within, which received a glowing 9/10 review from us, praised for revitalizing the two-decade-old MMO and making it feel fresh and thrilling again. Kotick expressed optimism about the next expansion, anticipating it would be great as well.