Steven Spielberg could have made a Call of Duty movie — Activision rejected the director because it was afraid of "complete control"

Recently, Paramount Pictures announced that they are working on a movie Call of DutyHowever, the project could have looked completely different if Steven Spielberg, the world’s highest-grossing director, had been at the helm.

As reported by Puck News, Steven Spielberg’s studio Amblin, along with Universal producer Jimmy Horowitz, allegedly represented Activision, which now owned by Microsoft, but the latter declined, ultimately choosing Paramount and producer David Ellison.

The reason was that with a director comes the so-called “Spielberg deal,” which includes the highest fees on the market, final editing rights, and full control over production and marketing.

The idea of a movie based on the Call of Duty series has been in the air for years, but previous attempts have never been realized. The series itself has been incredibly successful since its debut in 2003, spanning several eras of war in games such as Modern Warfare and Black Ops. With more than 500 million copies sold and over $30 billion in revenue over time, Call of Duty is among the most profitable entertainment projects of all time.

Spielberg’s involvement would have significant prestige, given his experience with military-themed films such as Saving Private Ryan. In addition, the director is an avid gamer himself and loves shooters, including Call of Duty.

As for the Call of Duty movie, it doesn’t have any details about the cast or the start date of production, but from sources Variety It is known that the agreement covers the potential for “expanding the universe to include film and television.”