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Taylor Sheridan is actively pursuing movies again. He will be writing and producing the action thriller, F.A.S.T., scheduled for a 2027 release. The Yellowstone creator will also be serving in the same capacity for the highly anticipated Call of Duty movie. Sheridan has his work cut out for him, considering that most adaptations of popular video games tend to flop. Besides that, this particular space is slowly becoming crowded, with new Mortal Kombat, Sonic, Minecraft, and Street Fighter movies set to premiere soon. Sheridan will need to make something far superior to the competition. Still, his work on Lioness and Without Remorse proves he has what it takes to handle a military-themed story.
‘Call of Duty’ Confirmed At CinemaCon
At CinemaCon, Paramount unveiled a sizzle reel teasing the upcoming live-action adaptation of Call of Duty, a confirmation that the wheels are in motion. Director Peter Berg will bring the first-person shooter video game to the screen, with a script by Taylor Sheridan and additional production work by Rob Kostich. During the event, Berg and Kostich revealed the good news, promising fans that the movie would be worth it.
Kostich shared that he and Berg had only been interested in making the film with “the right leadership, someone who cares about the IP as much as we do, and in David Ellison (Paramount Skydance CEO), we found that partnership.” He added that he felt “deeply connected to the special operations community” and intended to depict it authentically while infusing the picture with “really big scope. “
What Will ‘Call of Duty’ Be About?
Activision
This is the big question, but there’s no answer yet. During the original announcement, Paramount and Activision used only marketing buzzwords that didn’t reveal much about the plot. The story might not be ready yet, or maybe the studio just doesn’t want to reveal too much, too early.
In September 2025, Activision sent out a survey asking fans of the game to state what they’d like to see in the COD movie. The choices included Modern Warfare, Black Ops, Zombies, or “Other.” Alternatively, Activision also wanted to know if people would prefer fresh feedback. However, it’s worth noting that Taylor Sheridan has been open about writing his stories his own way, without input from anyone else, so it’s unclear if any feedback will be incorporated.
The Call of Duty franchise has been around for over 20 years, telling different kinds of stories, and Head of Xbox Game Studios Matt Booty told Variety that he believes Sheridan has a great challenge ahead of him.
“There’s two decades of Call of Duty. Where do you start? Which character do you pick from which branch of the franchise? And so the team has got a vision where they want to go, and I think Taylor Sheridan will be a good match for what they’ve got in mind,”
Perhaps Sheridan should accommodate external opinion this time. The game’s fans will be very keen on little details and, to avoid unnecessary criticism, the Yellowstone creator ought to play it safe. After all, he isn’t known to be a gamer.
Who Will Star in ‘Call of Duty’?
Activision
No cast details have been revealed yet, but news will definitely come out soon enough. Will we see one of Sheridan’s favorites? The writer-producer is known to prefer big-name actors for his productions, so expect to see one of the world’s most bankable movie stars. But it isn’t entirely up to him. With the studio expected to spend big on special effects, the budget for the actors might be reduced, resulting in a thin cast with lesser-known names.
The game’s legendary Captain John Price needs a commanding presence, so Sheridan and the team will need to get the best person for the job. Alan Ritchson could be a perfect fit, given his excellent work in War Machine. He sure handles military roles magnificently. Further proof of his expertise lies in Ghosts of War. Dwayne Johnson could also do well in such a role, though he has become a polarizing figure in recent years.
Other popular characters like Simon “Ghost” Riley and Vladimir Makarov can be portrayed by any good actor, preferably one with experience working on war or special ops movies. Will there be movie-exclusive characters? Perhaps, but there’s no need to add more when there are so many already. Hopefully, more focus will go to female characters like Farah Karim from Modern Warfare and Polina Petrova from Vanguard.
When Will ‘Call of Duty’ Be Released?
Activision
During Paramount’s CinemaCon presentation, the studio revealed that Call of Duty is set for theatrical release on Jun. 30, 2028. Will the adaptation perform well? A strong fanbase already exists. According to Statista, the video game franchise boasts over 100 million monthly active players across all major platforms. If these numbers translate to ticket sales, we might just end up with one of the highest-grossing movies of all time.
However, the film will have plenty of competition to deal with, as Lilo & Stitch 2, Incredibles 3, and Final Destination 4 are all set to release around that time. You can also bet on more studios announcing summer 2028 release dates for their upcoming movies. Still, as long as no major action and war movies premiere during that period, Sheridan and Paramount should be fine.
Are you excited?
