If anybody can crack the curse of video game adaptations, it’s Duncan Jones. The filmmaker behind Moon and Source Code has been very busy crafting a feature film adaptation of the incredibly popular World of Warcraft, and while filming is complete, Jones has a lengthy post-production process ahead of him. Nevertheless, Jones and Legendary/Universal weren’t going to completely forsake fans at the WoW convention BlizzCon, and today during the film’s panel, the Warcraft movie characters were revealed along with the first posters for the film. Leading The Alliance is Travis Fimmel as Anduin Lothar, a war hero who sacrificed everything to keep the people of Azeroth safe. He is joined by Dominic Cooper’s King Llane Wrynn, the leader of the Alliance city of Stormwind, as well as the mysterious Medivh (Ben Foster) and Garona (Paula Patton), a survivor caught between the Alliance and the Horde.
And what of The Horde? Hit the jump to see the full character breakdowns for Warcraft, which includes some very familiar names to fans of the game as well as Dawn of the Planet of the Apes standout Toby Kebbel (aka Koba). Warcraft is slated for release in 3D on March 11, 2016.
Firstly, here are the official descriptions for the members of The Alliance:
Anduin Lothar (Travis Fimmel)
The lead protagonist for the Alliance, Lothar is a war hero who has sacrificed everything to keep the people of Azeroth safe.
King Llane Wrynn (Dominic Cooper)
King Llane is the leader of the Alliance city of Stormwind and a beacon of hope to its people in a time of darkness.
Medivh (Ben Foster)
Known as ‘the Guardian,’ Medivh is a mysterious and reclusive protector who wields formidable power.
Khadgar (Ben Schnetzer)
Khadgar is a gifted young mage, embarking on a daring search for the truth.
Lady Taria (Ruth Negga)
Taria is the royal Queen of Stormwind, King Llane’s great love and most trusted counsel.
Garona (Paula Patton)
Caught between the Alliance and the Horde, Garona is a strong-willed survivor who must decide where her true loyalty lies.
And here’s The Horde, made up of orcs that will be visually realized using cutting-edge motion-capture technology in the vein of Dawn of the Planet of the Apes:
Durotan (Toby Kebbel)
The lead protagonist for the Horde, Durotan is the noble Chieftain of the Frostwolf Clan, battling to save his people and his family from extinction.
Orgrim (Rob Kazinsky)
Orgrim is Durotan’s right hand and a brave warrior destined to wield the Doomhammer: a weapon of orc legend.
Blackhand (Clancy Brown)
Known as ‘The Destroyer’, Blackhand is one of orc-kind’s most fearsome and titanic warchiefs.
Gul’Dan (Daniel Wu)
Gul’dan is a supreme orc ruler, fueled by a dark magic that even he cannot control.
Fans of the Warcraft games will find that many of these names are incredibly familiar, which should clue you into the fact that Jones is mining the mythology of the games to tell his story rather than creating new characters and just using the brand name recognition. I’m very curious to see what you WoW fans have to say about this news, so sound off in the comments below!
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