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Duncan Jones Lands Directing Job on Legendary's 'Warcraft' Movie!
by Alex Billington
January 30, 2013
Source: THR
Wow, this is huge news! Especially for Duncan Jones, director of sci-fi favorites Moon and Source Code, ready to break out big. THR is reporting that Legendary Pictures has signed on Duncan Jones, son of David Bowie, to direct their big live-action Warcraft movie adapted from the Blizzard video game universe. While we've known about this project for a while, it was most recently in the hands of director Sam Raimi, but I presume that was before he jumped onto Disney's Oz the Great and Powerful. Jones was also attached to an Ian Fleming biopic, but with the BBC already working on one, and with this big offer instead, that can wait.
THR's reports is fairly sparse on details, only confirming that Thomas Tull and Jon Jashni of Legendary Pictures are developing this along with Blizzard and Atlas Entertainment’s Charles Roven and Alex Gartner. The screenplay comes from Charles Leavitt but they remind us that unfortunately, "Legendary is keeping its script under wraps." However, they are aiming for a "fall 2013 start and a 2015 release." It sounds like Duncan Jones is really their guy, and they're moving forward at full speed to get this in theaters in two years time. Damn. Bring it on, Duncan! Congratulations to one our favorite directors. He's one of the most vocal people on twitter as @manmademoon and it will be interesting to see how he keeps up with this film online.
We first covered any news on a World of Warcraft movie way back in 2007, with details and hazy concept art coming from BlizzCon. Since then we've heard plenty off and on, including that Sam Raimi was attached to direct until he dropped out last summer. Legendary started retooling the project with a new writer and it sounds like they got Duncan Jones in the mix as well. Back in 2010, Raimi commented optimistically about their plans for the Warcraft movie: "we're just trying to create realistic characters that can live in the World of Warcraft as though you were in the game itself, in one or two or three of those environments, and see the interaction with those great mythical, iconic characters." Stay tuned for more. Is Duncan a great choice?
20 Comments
3
Duncan is fine. Maybe someone who has directed bigger fantasy epics might be better. But I think Duncan will do fine.
DAVIDPD on Jan 30, 2013
4
Jones will do amazingly, I'm sure. He's a fantastic director, and I'm sure anything he does will be great!
Greg dinskisk on Jan 30, 2013
5
Good on ya mate! Fish are friends not food.
Xerxexx on Jan 30, 2013
6
They should make a Zelda movie.
Marcus on Jan 30, 2013
8
Opens the article with "wow". Slick. Great news.
OfficialJab on Jan 30, 2013
10
We'll probably have flying cars and an end to world hunger by then too, it's going to be awesome.
Carpola on Jan 31, 2013
11
But more importantly, hoverboards!
Neuromancer on Jan 31, 2013
12
I think that is the date for it? The streets will be like waves for the surf.
Carpola on Jan 31, 2013
13
Awesome.
si1ver on Jan 31, 2013
14
Zowie is a great director and takes the focus off all the flashy effects so that you can really empathise with the characters, I loved Moon and Source Code and I think that he will bring more emotion to the piece... whether it needs it or not I don't know, but I'm sure he'll do well with the source material no matter what!
Dearsleazy on Jan 31, 2013
15
Lore has been added to WoW over the years. In 2006/7 when they started to think of the movie, only 1 expansion was out at the time. Now there's 4, (a 5th will tie-in with this film), half a dozen novels(not many) and some comicbooks. Maybe it would fit a 12 episode TV-series, but a movie(or 3)?? Dunno about that. Still, it will be interesting to see what they choose to include, and how relevant they will make the movie with a release of another expansion-most likely a hand-in-hand release. There is a reason why it hasn't been made, at one stage the movie(s) were meant to be huge ads for the expansions, but they found out that was too hard to pull off. I'd much rather see a in-depth documentary on how 3 CEO's of Blizzard became billionaires, they have $ 5 billion between the three of them. I'm pretty sure Sam Raimi is glad he's off the hook, and I kinda feel sorry that Duncan Jones has been duped into this. There's not many original ideas or concepts within the WoW universe. But that doesn't matter when there's so much cash behind it saying it's the best shit ever. Do none of you play WoW or have played WoW at Firstshowing?
David Banner on Jan 31, 2013
16
Umm, it's a Warcraft movie. Don't think I saw anywhere that it's about WoW. WoW is only part of Warcraft.
player2aj on Jan 31, 2013
17
Yeah, you are sort of right, but, the Warcraft RTS has been a bit dead last decade, and WoW took the lead in this universe, so most have been saying "WoW movie". It's the same universe, only in another format. They have eluded many times that they have "a lot of lore on hold", but Blizzard speak(and accounting) can be creative. I hope it's something new, and not a tie-in with the 5th(and maybe last) expansion("to get the conclusion, play the game! ") Movie-->5th expansion-->Warcraft(RTS) IV-->Franchise End.
David Banner on Feb 2, 2013
18
I may need to fire up my WOW account again. And Duncan? Super awesomeness with 6 hours of arm pumping.
PBGray on Jan 31, 2013
19
The only video game movie Duncan Jones should be directing is Metal Gear Solid. This doesn't seem like a good fit for him at all.
Jaret Curial on Jan 31, 2013
20
Avi Arad is producing the following as TV-Shows or movies the next decade: Infamous Metal Gear Solid Uncharted Pac-Man: The Adventure Begins. So they will be made.
David Banner on Feb 2, 2013
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