Legendary Pictures unsure how to make a movie out of Warcraft

Legendary Pictures CEO Thomas Tull has admitted to the challenges in adapting Blizzard's Warcraft franchise for the big screen.

Speaking to Slashfilm, Thomas Tull identified the problem in the approach to making films with material sourced from video games.

“A lot of times, what has happened in the past is, studios have said, ‘How many people play that game? OK, then that means they’ll probably all go out and buy tickets.’ That is an incredibly poor way to make a movie.”

He admitted that there was a lack of experience when it came to approaching the subject of adapting the franchise for the big screen, saying, "So for us, it’s that we don’t know how to make a movie out of Warcraft, the video game. It’s the incredible story, the war, and these races, and everything these guys at Blizzard have come up with."

Blizzard's Warcraft franchise has been in the works for a film adaptation since its announcement at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in 2006. The film is expected to begin shooting early next year with Duncan Jones (Moon, Source Code) to direct the project following the controversial departure of Sam Raimi (Spider-Man, Oz the Great and Powerful).

The Warcraft film is believed to have a budget that exceeds $100 million, and is intended for release in cinemas in 2016.