Despite doing relatively well in China, Warcraft was a huge flop in the United States, earning just over $24 million at the domestic box office. You’d think that a sequel would be permanently off the table based on such weak earnings, but according to insider Daniel Ritchman (via MovieWeb), a Warcraft 2 is actually in the works.
While plot details appear to non-existent (Ritchman’s scoop is locked behind his Patreon account), revisiting Blizzard’s RTS epic may not be such a bad idea for Legendary Studios. Despite its lukewarm reception in the states, the original film still holds the record for highest-grossing video game movie of all time ($439 million worldwide, according to Box Office Mojo).
The writers also have plenty of history to adapt. If you’ll remember, the 2016 film functioned more like a prequel by focusing on Durotan instead of Thrall, who is regarded by many as the main character of the franchise. Fans were also hoping to see Arthas Menethil and his descent into the Lich King, which would be great material for the sequel.
“The movie…found a big audience in China, and, considering China’s importance to box office takings these days, it seems that Legendary Pictures are now desperate to capitalize on this and have another go at bringing the World of Warcraft to the big screen,” MovieWeb noted. “While Warcraft may have stumbled both financially and critically, the movie barely scrapped the surface where story and character are concerned.”