Last week, it was officially announced that Paramount/Skydance and Activision had closed a deal to develop a live-action feature film based on the extremely popular “Call of Duty” video game franchise. But there is now reporting that claims director Steven Spielberg nearly got his mitts on it first.
Puck News, which originally reported on the gestating deal before it was confirmed last Tuesday, recently revealed that director Steven Spielberg, Amblin Entertainment, and Universal Pictures attempted to get their own deal together with a pitch before “Call of Duty” publisher Activision passed and signed a licensing deal with Paramount.
They add that Spielberg was a fan of the games and player, however, Activision is said to have more creative control over at Paramount, which isn’t terribly shocking as video game adaptations only recently have become super-successful and likley has to do with how deeply involved the original creators/games studios are (“The Last of Us” is a prime example of how the collaboration between HBO and Naughty Dog was benefiical to the series).
On paper, Spielberg would have made an excellent producer/director on the project, having made a plethora of military and spy projects over the years with “Munich,” “Saving Private Ryan,” “Bridge of Spies,” “Band of Brothers,” “The Pacific,” “War Horse,” and “Masters of the Air.” The various “Call of Duty” games over the years take place from a WWII setting to the distant future of 2187 (“Zombies” mode was a clear inspiration to Zack Snyder‘s “Army of The Dead“), allowing for all sorts of ideas concerning a feature film adaptation.
In 2018, there was an attempt to have Italian director Stefano Sollima (“Zero Zero Zero,” “Sicario 2”) helm a “Call of Duty” movie for Activsion Blizzard Studios but that obviously fizzled-out around the time his “Jack Ryan” universe film “Without Remorse” starring Michael B. Jordan failed to click with audiences (sequel “Rainbow Six” still in development with director Chad Stahelski attached, another flick at Paramount) and the project moved over to fresh eyes from David Ellison.
What we don’t know at this point is who is going to be tasked at Paramount/Skydance to write and direct their iteration of “Call of Duty.” Perhaps, they’ll consider getting folks like Christopher McQuarrie, Joseph Kosinski, and mega-producer Jerry Bruckheimer involved, but only time will tell. Yet, the film franchise potential is huge here if the right creative team and cast are assembled.
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