Xbox is expanding its ambitions beyond video games with the launch of XP, a new division designed to manage the company's growing entertainment business. The unit will bring together projects involving films, television shows, merchandise, live events and brand partnerships, creating a central structure for turning Xbox's popular gaming franchises into entertainment experiences that reach audiences beyond the gaming community.
The move reflects a broader strategy to make Xbox's intellectual property more valuable across different industries. Instead of limiting its franchises to consoles and PC games, the company wants fans to experience its characters, stories and fictional worlds through movies, streaming series, physical products and events.
The name XP is a reference to “experience points,” a familiar term in video games that represents progress or achievements earned by players. In this case, the name also reflects Xbox's intention to build on its gaming identity while reaching new audiences through other forms of entertainment.
Matthew Ball, Xbox's chief strategy officer, announced the initiative in a blog post, presenting the new division as part of the company's wider ambitions for the brand. The move is intended to bring previously separate entertainment activities together under one organization, making it easier to coordinate projects and develop long-term plans for individual franchises.
The goal is to create a more connected entertainment business rather than treating every film, television adaptation, product line or live event as a separate undertaking. By coordinating these activities, Xbox can look for opportunities to introduce its games to people who may never have played them while giving existing fans more ways to engage with the franchises they already love.
XP will be organized around four main areas, each responsible for a different part of the company's entertainment strategy.
The first is Xbox Pictures, which will focus on bringing Xbox's gaming worlds to film and television audiences. This includes adapting popular games into movies, live-action series and other forms of screen entertainment. The objective is to preserve the appeal of established franchises while presenting their stories to viewers who may be unfamiliar with the original games.
The second area, Xbox Products, will concentrate on consumer products and merchandise inspired by Xbox franchises. These products could give fans ways to connect with their favorite games outside the screen, from collectibles and branded items to other products built around recognizable characters and fictional worlds.
The third division, Xbox Places, will focus on live events and experiences. Its responsibilities include immersive attractions, in-person activities, broadcasts and destinations connected to Xbox's entertainment properties. The idea is to create opportunities for fans to interact with these franchises in physical spaces, rather than limiting their experiences to playing games or watching adaptations at home.
The fourth area, Xbox Partnerships, will develop relationships with brands, creators and communities. These collaborations could help Xbox reach new audiences through sponsorships, promotional campaigns and joint projects. Partnerships also offer a way to connect gaming franchises with other parts of popular culture, potentially increasing their visibility beyond traditional gaming platforms.
Together, the four areas are intended to give Xbox a more coordinated approach to entertainment. A successful game could become the foundation for a film or television series, which could then support merchandise, live experiences and partnerships. Each part of the business could help introduce the franchise to new audiences while strengthening interest among existing fans.
Kayleen Walters has been appointed president of XP and will lead the new division. Walters previously headed Mojang, the studio behind Minecraft, and has experience working across gaming and film. She also served as an executive producer on A Minecraft Movie, giving her direct experience with the process of adapting a major video game property for the big screen.
Her appointment places an executive familiar with both game development and entertainment adaptations in charge of Xbox's expanded ambitions. The role will involve overseeing a broad range of activities, bringing together creative projects and commercial opportunities that previously operated across different parts of the organization.
Walters' move also comes with a leadership change at Mojang. Maria Angelidou-Smith, who previously served as Reddit's chief product officer, is set to become the new CEO of Mojang and Minecraft, with her appointment scheduled to take effect on October 19. The change represents a significant transition for the studio as Microsoft continues to develop the Minecraft franchise across games and other forms of entertainment.
The creation of XP follows the commercial success of recent video game adaptations, particularly A Minecraft Movie and the live-action Fallout series. These projects have demonstrated how established gaming franchises can attract audiences through different formats, including cinema releases and streaming services.
For Xbox, the opportunity goes beyond producing individual successful films or television shows. A well-received adaptation can introduce a franchise to people who have never played the original game, creating opportunities for the wider brand. At the same time, existing fans can become more interested in the fictional world when they see it explored through new characters, stories and formats.
This approach has become increasingly important as entertainment companies look for ways to extend the value of established intellectual property. Popular fictional worlds can support multiple products and experiences over many years, provided that new projects maintain audience interest and offer something worthwhile beyond simply repeating the original material.
Xbox already has several projects that could benefit from the new structure. A sequel to A Minecraft Movie is among the projects mentioned in connection with the company's wider entertainment plans, while a film based on the Call of Duty franchise is also in development.
The company is also investing in television and animation. Amazon's Fallout adaptation has become one of the prominent examples of a video game franchise successfully moving into live-action storytelling, and a third season is part of the reported development plans. An animated series based on Diablo is also in development for Netflix, extending another major gaming property into television entertainment.
These projects illustrate the range of opportunities available to Xbox. Minecraft can appeal to families and younger audiences, Fallout offers a post-apocalyptic world suited to dramatic storytelling, and Call of Duty has the foundations for a large-scale military action film. Diablo, meanwhile, provides a darker fantasy setting that could translate into animation.
Bringing these projects under a more centralized entertainment strategy could help Xbox coordinate their development, promotion and potential connections to other products. However, the creation of XP does not guarantee that every planned adaptation will be completed or that every franchise will achieve the same level of success. Each project will still depend on its creative execution, production process and audience response.
The move also comes during a period of organizational change at Microsoft and Xbox. CEO Asha Sharma, who took over the top job in February, has been working to reshape the business and establish longer-term plans for its major franchises. The launch of XP forms part of that broader restructuring, which has also included layoffs and changes affecting existing teams and studios.
That context makes the new division more than a simple expansion into Hollywood. It represents an effort to reorganize how Xbox manages its franchises and identifies opportunities outside the core gaming business. The company is looking to create a more consistent strategy for developing its intellectual property across entertainment formats while adapting to changes in the wider gaming industry.
This is not Xbox's first attempt to establish a dedicated entertainment operation. Microsoft launched Xbox Entertainment Studios in 2012 with ambitions to develop original television and interactive entertainment content. However, that division was shut down in 2014 as the company changed its strategy.
The new XP initiative arrives in a different environment. Video game adaptations have become a more established part of the entertainment industry, and successful projects have shown that gaming audiences can translate into viewers for films and television series. Xbox is now attempting to build on those opportunities with a structure designed to connect its entertainment activities rather than treating them as isolated experiments.
The challenge will be turning that strategy into consistent results. A popular game does not automatically produce a successful movie or television series, and merchandise or live events must offer genuine value to fans to maintain interest. Xbox will need to balance the commercial opportunities of its franchises with creative decisions that respect what makes each property appealing in the first place.
If the strategy works, XP could help Xbox develop a more recognizable entertainment presence beyond its consoles and games. Fans could encounter its franchises through cinema, streaming platforms, physical products and live experiences, while new audiences could discover the original games through those adaptations.
For now, the launch of XP signals a more organized push into the entertainment business. With Walters leading the division and several adaptations already in development, Xbox is positioning its most recognizable gaming worlds for a future in which a franchise can exist across multiple forms of media rather than being defined by a single game.
