Activision Blizzard – makers of Call of Duty – has unveiled plans to create and release its own film and TV series. The first projects from the newly formed Activision Blizzard Studios will be based on the “Call of Duty” military shooter franchise and kid-focused “Skylanders” toy-game series.
Activision Blizzard Studios co-president Nick Van Dyk said this much:
The first TV series from Activision Blizzard Studios will be “Skylanders Academy.” The computer-generated show is set to debut in 2016, and will feature the voices of Justin Long, Ashley Tisdale, and Jonathan Banks. The studio also is working on a “Call of Duty” film series, with the first installment likely ready for deployment in 2018 or 2019.
He further added that:
The releases will be consistent with the high adrenaline action that fans expect from this franchise, but we’re going to deliver this intellectual property to the broadest movie-going audience.
The move follows Activision Blizzard partnering with Legendary Pictures for a film based on Blizzard’s “Warcraft” fantasy franchise. The movie centering on the battle between the game’s Alliance and Horde factions is set for release June 10 and will be distributed by Universal Pictures.
The formation of a devoted studio is similar to Activision rival Ubisoft establishing a film and TV division in 2011. That studio is responsible for the Nickelodeon series “Rabbids Invasion,” as well as an “Assassin’s Creed” film based on the historical series starring Michael Fassbender, due Dec. 21, 2016.
A similar venture didn’t work out for Microsoft. After two years, the company closed its Xbox Entertainment Studios in 2014. The division had been tasked with creating series based on such Microsoft game franchises as “Halo,” ”Forza” and “Gears of War.”
Credits:Yahoo!
