Call of Duty movie director once said people who play war video games are "weak" and "pathetic"

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Call of Duty movie director Peter Berg is in the firing line after controversial quotes from a 2013 interview were resurfaced.

The Esquire interview (H/T Neat at ResetEra) saw Berg – perhaps best known for directing Will Smith superhero movie Hancock – take aim at those who partake in a spot of virtual warfare.

Berg said, "Pathetic. Pathetic. Keyboard courage. Can't stand it. The only people that I give a Call of Duty get-out-of-jail-free card to is the military. They're out there serving and they're bored and they want to entertain themselves? Okay, maybe. Kids? Uh-uh."

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Berg later bragged that he would tell Navy SEAL members that playing Call of Duty was "pathetic".

He added, "I think anyone that sits around playing video games for four hours... It's weak. Get out, do something."

Berg was named as the director of the live-action Call of Duty movie earlier this month. He is set to work from a script co-written by Yellowstone creator Taylor Sheridan. The news comes six months after a report that revealed Steven Spielberg wanted to direct Call of Duty until Activision got "spooked."

At CinemaCon, Activision president Rob Kostich said of the Call of Duty movie, "We want to make sure that the authenticity of it is captured on a human level so that it feels really real and infuse that with epic scope."

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Fittingly, long-time Call of Duty rival Battlefield is also heading to the big-screen – with some serious creative muscle behind it.

Mission: Impossible – Fallout director Christopher McQuarrie is onboard, and Michael B. Jordan may even star in the project.

That's a better start than Peter Berg's decade-old comments shooting himself in the foot, that's for sure.

Call of Duty hits cinemas on June 30, 2028.

For more, check out the upcoming video game movies currently in development.

Bradley RussellSenior Entertainment Writer

I'm the Senior Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, focusing on news, features, and interviews with some of the biggest names in film and TV. On-site, you'll find me marveling at Marvel and providing analysis and room temperature takes on the newest films, Star Wars and, of course, anime. Outside of GR, I love getting lost in a good 100-hour JRPG, Warzone, and kicking back on the (virtual) field with Football Manager. My work has also been featured in OPM, FourFourTwo, and Game Revolution.

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