Blizzard Beyond Gaming – From Warcraft to Diablo and Overwatch, the Road to Film and TV Since 2019

New Format Limited | Film • Media • Gaming • Technology • Culture

For decades, Blizzard Entertainment has created some of the most recognisable fictional universes in gaming:

Warcraft.

Diablo.

StarCraft.

Overwatch.

But Blizzard’s storytelling has never been limited to games. Novels, comics, cinematics, animated shorts, art books and other forms of media have progressively expanded these worlds.

The question now is whether Blizzard is ready to take the next step.

Could Blizzard’s biggest gaming universes become major film and television franchises?

With BlizzCon returning to Anaheim on September 12–13, 2026, New Format looks at the journey from the end of the previous BlizzCon era to the current push toward film and television.

Before 2019: Blizzard Had Already Reached the Big Screen

Any discussion of Blizzard’s film ambitions has to begin before our 2019 timeline.

Warcraft, directed by Duncan Jones, was released in 2016 and became Blizzard’s first major Hollywood feature-film adaptation.

The film brought Azeroth to cinemas and demonstrated the commercial potential of Blizzard’s international audience.

However, despite strong international box-office performance, a sequel did not immediately move into production.

The result was significant.

Blizzard had proved that one of its universes could become a major motion picture, but it had not yet established a continuing cinematic franchise.

That experience became the starting point for the next phase of Blizzard’s transmedia ambitions.

2019: Blizzard’s Universes Were Ready for More

By the time of BlizzCon 2019, Blizzard already had a substantial storytelling ecosystem outside its games.

World of Warcraft had an extensive library of novels and short stories.

StarCraft had novels and comics.

Diablo had expanded lore and literary material.

Overwatch had become particularly notable for its animated shorts and cinematic storytelling.

The important point is that Blizzard already possessed the ingredients required for transmedia storytelling.

The challenge was turning that existing material into long-form entertainment for film and television audiences.

2020: Netflix Enters the Picture

The first major modern indication of Blizzard’s television ambitions came in 2020.

Reports emerged that Blizzard properties were being developed for animated television, with Diablo and Overwatch among the projects associated with Netflix.

StarCraft was also discussed in reports surrounding Blizzard’s broader animation ambitions.

The potential was enormous.

Diablo had everything required for dark fantasy animation.

Overwatch had an established cast of distinctive characters and a visual style already proven through Blizzard’s cinematics.

StarCraft offered science-fiction, military conflict and three radically different factions.

For Blizzard, animation also offered a way to expand these universes without the enormous production requirements of large-scale live-action fantasy.

2020: The Netflix Relationship Breaks Down

The same year brought a major complication.

Activision Blizzard became involved in a legal dispute with Netflix concerning allegations surrounding the recruitment of Blizzard’s former CFO Spencer Neumann.

The dispute contributed to the breakdown of the relationship between the companies.

The previously reported Blizzard-related Netflix projects did not develop into the major television slate that fans had anticipated.

This period demonstrated an important reality of the entertainment business:

An adaptation can be discussed publicly for years without ever reaching production.

Having a major intellectual property and a potential streaming partner does not guarantee a finished series.

2021–2023: Blizzard Returns to Its Games

During the following years, Blizzard’s public focus shifted heavily back toward its core games.

World of Warcraft continued to expand.

Overwatch evolved into Overwatch 2.

Diablo IV was released in 2023.

StarCraft remained comparatively quiet.

At the same time, Blizzard continued producing cinematic trailers, animated shorts and other high-quality narrative material.

This was important because Blizzard was not abandoning storytelling.

Instead, it was continuing to tell increasingly sophisticated stories inside and alongside its games, while the previously reported Hollywood projects remained unrealised.

2023: Microsoft Changes Blizzard’s Position

On October 13, 2023, Microsoft completed its acquisition of Activision Blizzard.

Blizzard subsequently became part of Microsoft’s wider gaming organisation.

The acquisition did not automatically create film or television adaptations for Blizzard.

However, it placed Blizzard inside a much larger technology and entertainment ecosystem.

This potentially creates more opportunities for distribution, partnerships and cross-media projects.

It also established a new corporate context for Blizzard’s intellectual properties as the company moved into the second half of the decade.

2024–2025: The Worlds Keep Growing

During 2024 and 2025, Blizzard continued expanding its major universes primarily through games and established forms of media.

World of Warcraft entered the next stages of the Worldsoul Saga.

Diablo IV continued to expand.

Overwatch 2 continued its live-service development.

Blizzard also continued using cinematics, stories, lore publications and other material to develop its fictional worlds.

But there was still no major publicly confirmed new Blizzard feature film or television series.

The gap between Blizzard’s enormous storytelling potential and its limited number of screen adaptations remained.

2026: Blizzard Starts Talking About Entertainment Again

This is where the story changes.

In 2026, Blizzard president Johanna Faries publicly discussed the company’s ambitions beyond traditional gaming.

Faries emphasised the importance of thinking of the company as Blizzard Entertainment, rather than simply a games business.

She also said that discussions were underway concerning adaptations of almost every Blizzard universe into film and television.

This does not mean that every Blizzard franchise currently has a movie or series in production.

It means that Blizzard’s leadership is openly acknowledging active conversations around adapting its intellectual properties.

That is a significant change from the years immediately following the failed Netflix projects.

Warcraft: The Most Established Candidate

Warcraft remains the most obvious candidate for another major screen adaptation.

The franchise already has:

• a feature film,

• decades of lore,

• hundreds of characters,

• multiple factions,

• numerous major story arcs,

• novels and comics,

• extensive cinematic material.

A new television series could potentially offer something the 2016 movie could not:

time.

A series could introduce Azeroth gradually instead of attempting to establish an enormous fantasy universe within a single film.

However, there is currently no officially announced Warcraft 2 movie or Warcraft television series.

Diablo: A Natural Fit for Animation

Diablo may be one of Blizzard’s strongest candidates for an animated adaptation.

Its universe already contains:

• demons,

• angels,

• gothic environments,

• horror,

• dark fantasy,

• powerful characters,

• centuries of mythology.

A mature animated series could explore the world without requiring the enormous live-action budgets associated with large fantasy productions.

There is also historical precedent: Diablo was previously associated with reported animated-series development.

But there is currently no officially announced Diablo series for 2026.

Overwatch: Characters Built for the Screen

Overwatch presents a different opportunity.

The franchise was created around a large ensemble of distinctive characters, each with their own histories, relationships and visual identities.

Blizzard’s animated shorts already demonstrated that these characters could carry stories independently of gameplay.

A long-form animated series could therefore be a natural evolution of an approach Blizzard has already used successfully.

Again, however, there is currently no officially announced Overwatch movie or television series.

StarCraft: The Untapped Science-Fiction Universe

StarCraft may be the most intriguing long-term possibility.

The universe offers:

Terrans.

Protoss.

Zerg.

Interstellar warfare.

Political conflict.

Military science fiction.

Decades of established lore.

A serious StarCraft animated or live-action series could potentially compete in a completely different part of the science-fiction market.

Yet StarCraft remains one of Blizzard’s biggest unanswered questions.

There is currently no officially announced StarCraft film or television project.

Why Animation Could Be Blizzard’s Biggest Opportunity

Blizzard already has decades of experience producing cinematic material.

Its animated shorts have repeatedly demonstrated that its characters and worlds can work outside traditional gameplay.

Animation could therefore offer Blizzard several advantages:

• lower production constraints than large-scale live action,

• greater visual freedom,

• established Blizzard art direction,

• easier integration with existing characters,

• opportunities for both adult and mainstream audiences,

• the ability to create multiple seasons and stories.

For Diablo and Overwatch in particular, animation could be a very natural fit.

Could Warcraft Return to Cinema?

A second Warcraft film remains one of the most frequently discussed possibilities among fans.

But there is currently no official announcement confirming that Warcraft 2 is in production.

The more interesting possibility may be that Blizzard chooses television rather than immediately returning to cinemas.

A series could explore a much larger portion of Warcraft’s mythology.

Instead of adapting an enormous period of Warcraft history into one movie, Blizzard could build an entire season around a specific conflict, character or era.

Could BlizzCon 2026 Be the Turning Point?

This is where confirmed information ends and possibilities begin.

Blizzard has not officially announced that a film or television project will be revealed at BlizzCon 2026.

However, the timing is notable.

BlizzCon returns on September 12–13, 2026, after a long gap between major traditional BlizzCon events.

The event brings together Blizzard’s major franchises, developers, creators and global fan community.

If Blizzard wanted to announce a major entertainment partnership, a new animated series or a film project, BlizzCon would provide a natural global platform.

But until Blizzard announces such a project, it should be treated as a possibility rather than a confirmed event.

What Could a Blizzard Screen Announcement Look Like?

If Blizzard decides to reveal a new screen adaptation, several formats would make sense.

Animated Series

A natural option for Diablo or Overwatch.

Live-Action Series

Potentially suitable for Warcraft or another large-scale universe.

Animated Feature Film

Potentially suited to Overwatch, Diablo or StarCraft.

Warcraft Feature Film

A direct continuation of Blizzard’s existing cinematic history.

Anthology Series

A particularly interesting possibility in which different episodes explore different characters and periods within one universe.

From Games to a Wider Entertainment Ecosystem

The biggest change may not be one specific film.

It may be Blizzard’s overall strategy.

The future could look less like:

Game → sequel → expansion

and more like:

Game → series → film → novel → comic → animation → merchandise → live experience.

Blizzard already possesses the intellectual property needed to build such an ecosystem.

Its worlds contain decades of established characters, stories and mythology.

The challenge is finding the right format and creative partners.

The Timeline: 2019–2026

2019 — Blizzard’s major universes already have extensive novels, comics, cinematics and animated material.

2020 — Reports emerge of animated adaptation plans involving Blizzard properties and Netflix.

2020 — The Activision Blizzard–Netflix dispute damages the relationship and the reported projects do not develop into the expected television slate.

2021–2022 — Blizzard’s public focus remains primarily on its games and internal cinematic storytelling.

2023 — Diablo IV launches, Overwatch 2 continues its development, and Microsoft completes its acquisition of Activision Blizzard.

2024–2025 — Blizzard continues expanding Warcraft, Diablo and Overwatch while no major new film or television adaptation is publicly confirmed.

2026 — Blizzard leadership publicly discusses active conversations around adapting almost all of its major universes for film and television.

September 2026 — BlizzCon returns to Anaheim.

And that is where the next chapter could begin.

New Format Verdict

The important story is not that Blizzard has already announced a new Warcraft movie, Diablo series or Overwatch show.

It hasn’t.

The important development is that Blizzard’s leadership is now openly talking about film and television adaptations across almost its entire portfolio.

That makes 2026 fundamentally different from the period immediately following the earlier Netflix developments.

Blizzard now has an enormous catalogue of established worlds, years of cinematic experience and a global audience already invested in its characters.

The question is no longer whether these universes could work on screen.

The question is:

Which universe will Blizzard choose first — and which studio will bring it to life?

What Should Blizzard Adapt First?

Now we want to hear from you.

🎬 Warcraft — a huge fantasy television series?

🔥 Diablo — a dark animated series?

🤖 Overwatch — an animated character-driven show?

🚀 StarCraft — a serious science-fiction series?

Or should Blizzard surprise everyone with another universe?

Tell New Format what you would watch.

Which Blizzard universe deserves the first major new film or television adaptation?

And if Blizzard announces a screen project during BlizzCon 2026, what format would you want to see — film, live-action series, animation or something completely different?

Join the conversation, share this article with another Blizzard fan, and follow New Format for our continuing BlizzCon 2026 coverage.

Because this time, we won’t only be asking:

“What’s the next Blizzard game?”

We’ll also be asking:

“What’s the next Blizzard story — and what screen will it appear on?”

BlizzCon 2026

September 12–13, 2026

Anaheim Convention Center, California

New Format Limited

Film • Media • Gaming • Technology • Culture