‘Call of Duty: Black Ops 7' to Star Milo Ventimiglia, Kiernan Shipka and Michael Rooker; New Game Follows David Mason in Year 2035 (EXCLUSIVE)
Microsoft's Activision is shaking up its long-running 'Call of Duty' franchise with a break from tradition and some A-list stars.
At the conclusion of Xbox Games Showcase 2025 on Sunday, 'Call of Duty: Black Ops 7' was unveiled as the next planned 'CoD' game from Treyarch and Raven Software. With the debut of 'Call of Duty: Black Ops 6' just last fall, this marks the first time ever that two 'Black Ops' installments have been released back to back in the life cycle of the 'Call of Duty' franchise.
More from Variety
Xbox Ally Handheld Console to Launch This Year From Microsoft
'Deadpool' VR Game Starring Neil Patrick Harris Set From Meta Quest, Marvel
New 'Game of Thrones' PC Strategy Game 'War for Westeros' to Launch in 2026
Variety has learned that 'Black Ops 7,' which is set in 2035, more than four decades after the events of 'Black Ops 6,' will star Milo Ventimiglia, Kiernan Shipka and 'CoD' alum Michael Rooker as voice and its motion capture actors. Ventimiglia will play David Mason, a protagonist previously introduced in 'Black Ops 2,' while Shipka has been cast as Emma Kagen, and Rooker is reprising his 'Black Ops 2' role of Mike Harper.
Though the casting news comes amid the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike against major video game publishers, including Activision, Variety has confirmed 'Call of Duty: Black Ops 7' is not a struck title and work on the game has not been impacted by the actors union's work-stoppage.
Activision marketing chief Tyler Bahl described casting Ventimiglia as David Mason (who will receive a subtle makeover so the character is more to Ventimiglia's likeness) as the right fit for 'an iconic character from the franchise and one of the fan favorites' from 'Black Ops 2.'
'And then we brought in Kiernan Shipka, which we're super excited about and is red hot right now, to play this character called Emma Kagen,' Bahl told Variety. 'It's a new character, and she is a CEO of this organization called The Guild, and we think her performance will really blow people away. And then finally, Michael Rooker, is returning to the franchise reprising his role as Mike Harper from 'Black Ops 2,' and I think our fans, you know, will be excited to see him, you know, come back and return to the franchise, you know, because he hasn't been here in a while.'
Per the game's description, 'In 'Call of Duty: Black Ops 7,' Treyarch and Raven Software are bringing players the most mind-bending 'Black Ops' ever. Developed as the next evolution of 'Black Ops,' this is the first-ever consecutive release within the series, set more than 40 years after the events of 'Black Ops 6.' The year is 2035 and the world is on the brink of chaos, ravaged by violent conflict and psychological warfare following the events of 'Black Ops 2' and 'Black Ops 6.' Wielding cutting-edge technology, David Mason and his team must fight back against a manipulative enemy who weaponizes fear above all else.'
The game is a co-op campaign and, like 'Black Ops 6,' will include round-based zombies.
'Call of Duty: Black Ops 7' will be released across Xbox Series X and S, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, and on PC via Xbox PC, Battle.net and Steam. The game will be available at launch through Xbox's Game Pass Ultimate or PC Game Pass subscriptions.
'Usually at this point in time, we would have teased everything that's coming out. And I think in a lot of ways we're setting this up more like a Beyonce album dropping; nobody's going to know about it, or nobody's going to see it coming,' Bahl told Variety. 'The whole goal was to really do something different, and for us to zag and show up in a unique way. And one way of doing that is almost not doing any pre-promotion and giving it to players in a really unexpected way.'
Watch the teaser trailer for 'Call of Duty: Black Ops 7' below.
Best of Variety
25 Hollywood Legends Who Deserve an Honorary Oscar
New Movies Out Now in Theaters: What to See This Week
Emmy Predictions: Animated Program — Can Netflix Score Big With 'Arcane,' 'Devil May Cry' and the Final Season of 'Big Mouth?'
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Fox News
22 minutes ago
- Fox News
LSU's Flau'jae Johnson admits friendship with Angel Reese has soured
Flau'jae Johnson and Angel Reese won a women's college basketball national championship together when the two players were with the LSU Tigers. However, it appears a lot has changed since then. Reese, who now plays in the WNBA for the Chicago Sky, opened up about her relationship with Johnson in September during an episode of her podcast, "Unapologetically Angel." She said at the time the two were not "as close as we used to be" and "there were no hard feelings" toward each other, but the closeness that was once there just is not anymore. Johnson added more to it when she appeared on "The Breakfast Club" on Monday. "We're not friends, but I mean that bond that we had, that thing that we did together, winning a national championship, you can never take that away from us," she said. "And so sometimes stuff happens. You wish it don't happen, but it do. And you just gotta grow. "But I support her in everything she do. Like, she's killing in the WNBA … I'm just proud of her." Johnson agreed that the reason for the split was partially to do with things happening in the background. "Yeah, it was a lot of media, it was a lot of locker room stuff, you know what I'm saying? Stuff that go on behind the scenes. But it happens. It happens," she said. During the 2023-24 season, as LSU looked to defend its national title, the mothers of both Reese and Johnson got into a social media spat. Reese's mother, Angel Reese Webb, criticized Johnson on social media, which prompted a response from Johnson's mom, Kia Brooks, who took aim at the former Tigers' forward GPA. Reese, the former LSU star, seemingly threw shade at Brooks when she graduated from school. Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.


Washington Post
39 minutes ago
- Washington Post
Winfrey's new book club pick marks the return of an old favorite, Wally Lamb
NEW YORK — For her next book club pick, Oprah Winfrey is highlighting an author she has praised even before she had a book club. Winfrey announced Tuesday that she has chosen Wally Lamb's new novel, 'The River Is Waiting,' the story of a father torn by grief and guilt. It's the third time she's selected a Lamb book and continues a bond predating 1996, when she launched her club.


Geek Tyrant
an hour ago
- Geek Tyrant
Jonathan Daviss Cast as Snoop Dogg in Craig Brewer's Upcoming Biopic for Universal — GeekTyrant
Universal Pictures has found its Snoop. Outer Banks star Jonathan Daviss has officially been cast to portray the legendary West Coast rapper in the studio's long-awaited Snoop Dogg biopic, with Hustle & Flow director Craig Brewer at the helm The film is being produced by Snoop Dogg himself, along with Brian Grazer and Sara Ramaker, president of Death Row Pictures. This is the first major film under the new Death Row Pictures banner, part of an overall deal with NBCUniversal Entertainment & Studios. Daviss is best known for his role as Pope in Netflix's Outer Banks , and he also starred in the dark comedy Do Revenge alongside Maya Hawke and Sophie Turner. With previous credits like Age of Summer and Edge of the World , this marks a big step into a high-profile leading role. The film will trace the story of Calvin Broadus Jr., the man who stepped onto the rap scene as Snoop Doggy Dogg and became an icon. From his early collaborations with Dr. Dre and the groundbreaking success of his Doggystyle album, to becoming a household name appearing in everything from The Voice to Olympic swimming coverage, the biopic promises to explore the layers behind Snoop's laid-back swagger and sharp lyrical mind. Universal has a solid track record when it comes to hip hop-centered stories. The studio previously delivered 8 Mile starring Eminem and Straight Outta Compton , which chronicled the rise of N.W.A. Both films made serious cultural impact, now the Snoop Dogg biopic looks poised to follow that legacy. Source: Deadline