Activision Mulling Over Starting Its Own Movie Studio

Some games graphics, especially cutscenes, have started to look so real that sometimes it feels as if you're actually watching a live action film. Sometimes it makes you wonder why these aren't turned into movies themselves. Fret not, true believer, as Activision is said to be wondering about that too, and might actually do something about it as well.

Making full-length films based on game franchise has proven to be a tricky business. Never mind all the licensing and paperwork involved, it is the execution that is the most harrowing experience, both for the filmmakers and for the moviegoers. The situation is sometimes so bad that it has become common belief that very few, if not none at all, games have ever become box office hits. It is perhaps no wonder then that publishers like Activision, who spend no small amount of resources to make their triple-A games look like a film, tread very cautiously when it comes to actually turning those games into films.

But there is light at the end of the tunnel and Activision might have an examplar in Marvel. The comic book company, now owned by Disney, has met resounding success in many of its superhero titles turned into film. Not that there has been no such attempt in the past, but very few can be considered comparable to Marvel's recent blockbusters. And the trick, it seems, is keeping everything in-house.

Make the film that it would like to see, now how some studio sees it. This seems to be the philosophy behind Marvel doing its own work for said movie hits. Activision might be following in those footsteps, trying to build up its own studio so that it can create a movie in its own vision instead of having to hand it over to a third-party. CEO Bobby Kotick is tipped to be preparing to get things started by headhunting for the needed executive talent to pull things together.

That said, it will still involve a lot of PR risk, even if Activision ends up making films from its own studio. There is always a danger of a film turning fans into an angry mob or coloring the perception of those unfamiliar with the game franchise, a risk that Kotick is said to be well aware of. Of course, these are all still rumors, but any word of about turning a crowd favorite like Call of Duty into a film is sure to send fans in a frenzy, whether for good or for ill.

VIA: Engadget