Peter Berg has been confirmed as the director of the live-action film based on Activision's huge-selling Call of Duty series. That news has brought fresh attention to what he has said about the games before, and the answer is not exactly soft.
Older comments from a 2013 Esquire interview have resurfaced after being spotted by ResetEra user Neat, with GamesRadar also picking up on them. The interview was framed around Berg's thoughts on toughness in America, and Call of Duty came up in a pretty direct way.
Berg described the games in harsh terms, calling them weak and taking aim at what he saw as bravery from behind a keyboard. He said he had little patience for people playing Call of Duty, with one clear exception.
In his view, service members were the only group he was willing to give some room. If people in the military were away serving, bored, and using the games for entertainment, he suggested he could understand that. For kids, though, he was firmly against it.
The remarks now feel especially interesting because Berg is attached to a film version of the very series he criticized. That does not tell us what he thinks today, but it does give the project an unusual bit of retro baggage before cameras even roll.
Berg's career started in front of the camera. His acting credits include Tale of Two Sisters, Crooked Hearts, A Midnight Clear, Cop Land, Smokin' Aces, and Adam Sandler's early film Going Overboard.
He has continued acting, with Mile 22 from 2018 listed as his most recent credit. That film was also one he directed and produced, which fits the shape of his later career.
These days, Berg is better known for directing and producing. His films behind the camera include Very Bad Things, The Kingdom, Hancock, Battleship, Lone Survivor, Deepwater Horizon, and Spenser Confidential.
The upcoming Call of Duty movie also has Taylor Sheridan involved on the script. Sheridan is known as the creator of Yellowstone, Landman, and Tulsa King, giving the adaptation another high-profile name outside the game world.
For now, the film is scheduled to arrive in cinemas on June 30, 2028. Until then, Berg's old comments are likely to remain part of the conversation around how this long-running shooter series makes the jump to live action.
