Remember the World of Warcraft movie? It was supposed to be done by Sam Raimi, only to have everyone’s dreams crushed when he went to do Oz: The Great and Powerful and said at Comic-Con 2012 that they had to go to a different director? I thought that was pretty much the death knell for the PC game turned hopeful movie franchise. Raimi would’ve been perfect for the director spot as it would have infused the right blend of action, fantasy and comedy into the world of Azeroth. Well, we might be in luck because it looks like Blizzard scored a new director and it’s a pleasant surprise.

According to the Hollywood Reporter and Collider, Duncan Jones has taken the reins as the director of the World of Warcraft movie. While he is known to some as the son of David Bowie, he has created a name for himself as one of the best up-and-coming directors with great movies such as Moon and Source Code on his resume. This will be his biggest project to date and will definitely launch him to the top of everyone’s directorial list if this pans out. I think it’s a great choice as he’s a pretty avid gamer and his ability to tell an entertaining story with some high concept plots, judging by his previous movies, shows he has the chops to handle an ambitious project such as this one.  Plus, he is definitely happy to take on the challenge of making the first good video game to movie project ever noting this on his Twitter:

So the gauntlet was thrown down ages ago: Can you make a proper MOVIE of a video game.Ive always said its possible.Got to DO it now! ;)

— Duncan Jones (@ManMadeMoon) January 31, 2013

He will be working off a script from Charles Leavitt (Blood Diamond), who took over after the first draft was done by Robert Rodat (Saving Private Ryan). Since Duncan Jones wrote Moon and Source Code, it wouldn’t shock anyone if he also took a few stabs at the script himself. No one really knows what the script will be following, but I imagine/hope it will probably follow Arthas and his descent and transformation into the Lich King, which technically took place in Warcraft III. It would seem to be the story that would make the most sense in terms of establishing the franchise because it sets up the game of World of Warcraft. 

However, since there are SOOO many characters and storylines in the Warcraft world, one can only guess what they actually will do for the silver screen. There is so much canon and characters out there in the Warcraft universe that they could honestly follow Thrall or the Dark Portal storyline. The big rumor is that it will be from the Alliance perspective, specifically the human side. Again, I’m rooting for the fall of Arthas because that would set up so much but we shall see. They are tentatively saying that this movie will be released in 2015, which will make the year a very crowded slate with Star Wars: Episode VII, The Avengers 2, Pirates of the Caribbean 5, possibly a Justice League movie too, so that might be the summer to rule all.

Also, we know that World of Warcraft game has to end soon. Deathwing is down for the count, the old gods are dwindling in numbers and we’re pretty much down to Sargeras as the big baddie that needs to be revealed. It’s only a matter of time before we finally get to deal with the leader of the Burning Legion so it might be time to wind it down for the almost decade old MMORPG. Plus, with Blizzard working on their next project, Titan, one could assume that 2015 ties the last expansion (or the end) of WoW with the movie? Time will tell but man, this news does excite me. Not to the point where I want to fire up WoW again (I’m retired) but maybe I’ll give Warcraft III another go-around for nostalgia’s sake.