Activision Blizzard is finally going full Hollywood status and announced that the launch of a film studio to create movies and TV shows that are based off of its games. With the Warcraft movie officially releasing this summer, this is quite appropriate.
Activision Blizzard is finally going Hollywood and announced that the launch of a film studio to create movies and TV shows that are based off of its games. With the Warcraft movie officially releasing this summer, this is quite appropriate.
Nick Van Dyk, former Disney executive, will be co-head of the division. There has been no announcement to who the other co-head would be though. It is quite exciting news as Activision Blizzard has a very successful line of games that came out including Call of Duty, Skylanders, Diablo, Hearthstone, and StarCraft, one can only speculate as to what awesome new things are to come. Along with this, if Activision Blizzard’s $5.9 billion acquisition of King succeeds, it will be the owner of Candy Crush Saga brand and other properties. It looks like they are definitely strategizing to become a force to be reckoned with in the entertainment industry.
The first production will be an animated TV series based off of the $3 billion Skylanders game series called Skylanders Academy. With results such as 250 million action figures sold since 2011, it was only time that this happened. Look for the pilot episode airing in the second quarter of 2016. Also in development is a “robust cinematic universe based on the Call of Duty franchise” which is a $10 billion game series with a humongous fan base. The first movie will come out in 2018 or 2019 according to Van Dyk.
Van Dyk also said “We are in the franchise IP business. The film and TV business can be a good business. The franchise IP business is a great business. We cannot wait to offer our fans new ways to enjoy the beloved characters, universes and stories they enjoy in our franchises.” Also, Bobby Kotick, chief executive of Activision Blizzard, said in a statement, “We intend to approach film and television development with the same unwavering commitment to excellence we are known for in game development.”
Even though Activision Blizzard is the world’s number 2 game publisher, there is no guaranteed success. There’s been plenty of games made into movies that have failed, and they have failed hard. Still, other game companies are joining the boat to create movies. Ubisoft is working on an Assassin’s Creed movie and Rovio has an Angry Birds movie in the works. Let’s see what’s in store for the future.
Source: venturebeat.com