Trailer for 'A Minecraft Movie' starring Jack Black, Jason Momoa receives mixed reactions

• "A Minecraft Movie" stars Jason Momoa as a real person and Jack Black as "expert crafter" Steve, the closest thing the game has to a playable protagonist.
• Minecraft's signature building blocks, monsters and villains are all on display in the teaser trailer, set to The Beatles' "Magical Mystery Tour."
• But some fans on social media were not pleased with the movie's animation, character portrayals and the use of CGI.

It wasn't long after Warner Bros. Pictures debuted the first teaser trailer for "A Minecraft Movie" that fans of the massively popular franchise made it abundantly clear how they felt about it.

Representing the latest video game to be adapted for the screen, "A Minecraft Movie" stars Jason Momoa as a real person and Jack Black as "expert crafter" Steve, the closest thing the game has to a playable protagonist.

Because Minecraft – known for its iconic cubic visuals – is one of the bestselling video games of all time, it's no surprise that its legion of fans had some ... thoughts about the first-look at the film.

Directed by Jared Hess ("Napoleon Dynamite," "Nacho Libre,") the Minecraft adaptation appears to blend the game's blocky style with real life, leaving fans bewildered. Many of them quickly took to social media after the trailer dropped Wednesday to pan the movie's animation, character portrayals, and the use of CGI.

Here's what to know about the first "A Minecraft Movie" trailer and what fans are saying about it.

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Trailer gives first look at Black, Momoa in Minecraft movie

Minecraft's signature building blocks, monsters and villains are all on display in the teaser trailer, set to The Beatles' "Magical Mystery Tour."

In the trailer, Momoa is Garrett "The Garbage Man" Garrison, a man who is mysteriously brought to the world of the popular videogame along with “Wednesday” star Emma Myers, "Orange is the New Black" star Danielle Brooks and Sebastian Eugene Hansen.

Black also makes an appearance, introducing himself to the group dramatically as Steve.

Jennifer Coolidge, who is also set to appear in the film, does not show up in the trailer.

Watch the teaser trailer here:

What is the Minecraft movie about?

"A Minecraft Movie" is of course based on the iconic sandbox worldbuilding game that debuted in 2011.

In an official synopsis, Warner Bros. describes the plot as four misfits who end up in the cubic world of Minecraft and must protect it from enemies that include the game's Piglins and Zombies while on a quest to return home.

Mixed reactions to 'A Minecraft Movie' teaser

Many longtime Minecraft fans felt the film's visual style was an unwelcome departure from the pixelated world that had made the game unique. Instead, fans expressed disappointment for the perceived over-reliance on CGI and the unsettlingly realistic creature designs.

Polarizing viewpoints took over social media, and even some news outlets – with one writer at Esquire complaining that the trailer release "ruined my week." Another at PC Gamer declared that the Minecraft film may supplant the widely-panned Borderlands adaptation as "the worst thing to happen to cinema in 2024."

On X, formerly Twitter, some users compared the visuals showcased in the trailer to an AI-generated rendering.

Others didn't like the blend of live-action and CGI.

Michael Edwards, a voice actor, criticized the the choice to adapt Minecraft as a live-action film instead of making it an animated movie.

“I do not understand the decision to have live action actors in the Minecraft world, when Minecraft translates so incredibly well to animation," Edwards posted on X. "The green screen here is horrendous.”

Others on social media were horrified by the animal designs, which transformed the games blocky animals into creatures that bore an unsettling resemblance to their real-life counterparts.

One user on X even compared the creative choice to the fiasco surrounding the unveiling of the movie-version of Sonic the Hedgehog, which forced animators to go back to the drawing board in 2020.

"Realistic animation will ruin us all," X user TommyInnit proclaimed.

And then others were simply baffled by the wig choice for Momoa.

What is the release date for 'A Minecraft Movie?'

"A Minecraft Movie" hits theaters April 4.

Eric Lagatta covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach him at elagatta@gannett.com

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