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 considerable resources and diverted developers' attention from their core game development responsibilities, resulting in delayed expansions and missed patch deadlines.

Despite the film's international success, grossing $439 million globally (though falling short of breaking even), Kotick maintained his critical stance, emphasizing the negative impact on Blizzard's development cycle. He revealed that Metzen took the film's poor reception personally and subsequently left to establish a board game company. Kotick later attempted to persuade Metzen to return as a consultant, but Metzen expressed significant concerns about the planned expansions, advocating for complete overhauls.

While Kotick acknowledged limited interaction with Metzen following his return, he credited Metzen's influence on the subsequent World of Warcraft expansion, praising its quality and success. This expansion, receiving a 9/10 rating in a review by [Source Name], was lauded for revitalizing the long-running MMO.