If you’re expecting the Call of Duty movie to be two hours of explosions and nonstop gunfights, director Peter Berg wants to set you straight. He says the film will take a much more serious approach, focusing on the human cost of war rather than spectacle.
In a recent interview with ComicBook.com, Berg said he believes the Modern Warfare series has “a real soul” that often gets overlooked. He described its characters as complicated people, not cartoon characters or comic book heroes, and he wants the film to treat them that way.
More than just a shooter
Berg accepts that violence and weaponry are a big part of Call of Duty’s appeal, but he doesn’t think that’s what the series is really about. For him, the heart of Modern Warfare is the cost of war and the burden carried by soldiers who put themselves between danger and everyone else.
He pointed to Captain Price, Soap, Ghost and Alex as examples of characters with real depth, and suggested the movie will spend time on what war takes out of them.
The film won’t be as graphically violent as Berg’s upcoming Netflix war film, The Mosquito Bowl, which is out on November 25. Even so, he says it will still show the consequences of combat rather than glossing over them.
A serious team behind it
The Call of Duty movie was announced in 2025 as a joint project between Paramount and Activision, with Berg directing and co-writing the script with Taylor Sheridan. The pair worked together on Hell or High Water, and Sheridan is best known for gritty dramas like Yellowstone, Sicario and Lioness. Berg’s own track record includes Lone Survivor and Deepwater Horizon, both grounded, true-story films about people under extreme pressure.
That background helps explain the direction they’re taking. Both have built careers on tough, realistic stories, and Berg singled out Sheridan as someone who really understands this kind of storytelling.
What we know so far
Plot details are still under wraps, and no cast has been announced yet. The film is set for release in summer 2028, timed to mark Call of Duty’s 25th anniversary.
Video game adaptations have had a mixed history, but a grounded take could suit Call of Duty well. Modern Warfare’s campaigns have always gone for intense, cinematic storytelling, and some of their most memorable moments are about loss and sacrifice rather than firepower. With Modern Warfare 4’s campaign earning strong reviews this month, there’s plenty of interest in the series’ stories right now.