'Warcraft' movie director draws inspiration from 'Rings'

LOS ANGELES - When director Duncan Jones was tasked with translating the popular video game "Warcraft" into a studio film, he was inspired by filmmaker Peter Jackson's adaptations of JRR Tolkien's fantasy saga "Lord of the Rings." "Not everyone had read Tolkien who went and saw those films but (Jackson) crafted a film with interesting characters and a plot that's engaged and people by the millions wanted to see more," Jones told Reuters. "Hopefully we've done the same with 'Warcraft.'" The film, out in U.S. theaters on Friday, brings an origin story of the fantasy world explored in the role-playing "World of Warcraft" gaming franchise from Activision Blizzard Inc, which had 10 million subscribers as of November 2015. Jones said that while he wanted to make a film that fans of the game would enjoy, he also wanted to introduce the world of "Warcraft" to newcomers and "make them come in and feel embraced by this fantasy setting that this film takes place in." "Warcraft" follows the battle between the monster-like Orcs as they try to colonize the human land of Azeroth, with magic playing a key role in the fight. The film features mythical Orcs, dwarves, elves, wizard-esque mages and trolls, much like "Lord of the Rings." Comcast Corp's Universal Pictures and Legendary Pictures, a subsidiary of China's Wanda Cinema Line Corp, co-financed the film's $160 million budget, with Universal distributing it globally except for China.