Meet the 'Warcraft' warriors: Toby Kebbell plays noble orc Durotan
Even with large tusks for teeth, monstrous features and a snarling otherworldly look, Durotan is the most human of all the orcs in Warcraft.
USA TODAY wraps up its week of exclusive videos introducing the main characters of Duncan Jones' fantasy action-adventure (out June 10) with the noble and brave personality played via motion-capture by Toby Kebbell.
The chieftain of the Frostwolf clan, Durotan is one of the leaders of an invading war party, including his pregnant wife and best friend Ogrim Warhammer (Rob Kazinsky), entering the realm of Azeroth. The orcs lost their home when the warlock Gul’dan (Daniel Wu) came to power, and wanting a safe haven for his spouse and child, Durotan decides he’ll have to come to terms with Anduin Lother (Travis Fimmel) and other men so another world isn’t poisoned as well.
“Durotan organizes a meting with the humans,” Kebbell says. “That’s where his leadership qualities come out — he stands against all odds because he has to keep his wife and child safe. You fight for those weaker than yourself if you happen to be strong enough.”
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This behind-the-scenes videos show Kebbell again working in the mo-cap space — he also played the mankind-hating Bonobo named Koba in 2014’s Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. According to visual-effects supervisor Bill Westenhofer, facial-capture technology is pushed even farther in Warcraft, and 150 dots were placed on Kebbell’s face so two cameras could record the actor’s detailed expressions and make his CGI character show that much more emotion.
"Every little nuance that Toby would perform, that would come through in Durotan," Westenhofer says. “You could see his eyes responding, just these little subtle movements, and it felt alive. That was just an amazing experience.”