Former Activision Blizzard Boss Bobby Kotick Slams Warcraft Film, Calls It 'One of the Worst Movies I've Ever Seen'

Former Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick slammed the 2016 Warcraft film adaptation as "one of the worst movies I've ever seen" in a recent interview with Grit. Kotick, who helmed Activision Blizzard for 32 years before his departure in December 2023, attributed the film's production to significant setbacks within World of Warcraft's development.

He cited the movie as a major distraction for the development team, contributing to burnout and the departure of veteran designer Chris Metzen in 2016. Kotick described Metzen as "the heart and soul of creativity" at the company. The film, according to Kotick, consumed substantial resources and diverted developers' attention from their core game development responsibilities. This led to delays in expansions and patches.

While the Warcraft film achieved international success, particularly in China, grossing $439 million globally, it underperformed in North America, earning only $47 million domestically and ultimately failing to recoup its massive budget. This financial underperformance, coupled with the development disruptions, solidified Kotick's negative assessment of the film's impact.

Kotick revealed that Metzen, deeply affected by the film's production, left to establish a board game company. Kotick subsequently attempted to persuade Metzen to return as a consultant, but Metzen expressed dissatisfaction with the planned expansions, advocating for a complete overhaul. Their subsequent collaboration was minimal, with Kotick prioritizing Metzen's creative autonomy. However, Kotick expressed confidence in the quality of the latest World of Warcraft expansion, which he credits to Metzen's influence. This expansion received a glowing 9/10 review, praised for revitalizing the long-running MMO.