Yesterday it was reported by Variety that Sam Raimi, director of Drag Me To Hell and the Spider-Man trilogy, has signed on to direct the live-action movie adaptation of the famous online game "World of Warcraft." Videogame publisher Blizzard Entertainment and Legendary Pictures will finance the film, with Warner Brothers co-financing and distributing. Not only does this project have Raimi on board, it also has The Dark Knight producer Charles Roven ready to play as well.

Said Raimi about the massively multiplayer online role playing game (MMORPG), "At it's core, 'Warcraft' is a fantastic, action-packed story."

The plan right now is for Raimi to overlook pre-production of the "Warcraft" film while also directing Spider-Man 4. He will work on Warcraft once Spider-Man 4 is finished.

Currently, the game has more than 11.5 million subscribers monthly. It premiered in 1994 as "Warcraft: Orcs and Humans," but has only been growing since then. The most recent installment of "Warcraft," "Wrath of the Licht King," sold more than 2.8 million copies in its first day, and more than 4 million in its first 30 days.

"'Warcraft' is emblematic of the kind of branded, event films for which our studio is best known," said Jeff Rubinov, president of Warner Bros. Pictures Group.

A deal to make a "Warcraft" game had been dormant since 2006. It was once reported that uber-director Uwe Boll was hoping to attain the project. (It was also rumored at the same time that he was basically laughed out of the Legendary and Blizzard offices).

Alex Gartner and Roven will produce with Legendary's CEO Thomas Tull and John Jashni, chief creative officer. Raimi will also produce with his partner Charles Donen. Executive producing will be Rob Tapert, and senior VP of creative development Chris Metzen will co-produce.

As difficult as a movie based on an MMORPG might be, Raimi is a good choice for the task. Clearly he has the imagination for such a fantastical storyline, as seen with even his low budget films like Evil Dead. Raimi is also a solid director in general, and a smarter pick by Blizzard and Warners than say, some obligatory video game director like Paul W.S Anderson or yes - even Uwe Boll.

What do you think, world? Excited for another video game movie, this time with a more reputable director? Any ideas on casting? And who should play the role of "kid who sits home all day and probably plays 'Warcraft' a bit too much"? Do you think Michael Cera should play the role of "Leeroy Jenkins"?

Source: Variety