Vince Zampella, one of the creators behind best-selling video games such as “Call of Duty,” has died. He was 55.
Video game company Electronic Arts said Zampella died Sunday. The company did not disclose his cause of death.
In 2010, Zampella founded Respawn Entertainment, a subsidiary of EA, and he also was the former chief executive of video game developer Infinity Ward, the studio behind the successful “Call of Duty” franchise.
A spokesperson for Electronic Arts said in a statement on Monday that Zampella's influence on the video game industry was “profound and far-reaching."
“A friend, colleague, leader and visionary creator, his work helped shape modern interactive entertainment and inspired millions of players and developers around the world. His legacy will continue to shape how games are made and how players connect for generations to come,” a company spokesperson wrote.
One of Zampella's crowning achievements was the creation of the Call of Duty franchise, which has sold more than half a billion games worldwide,
The first person shooter game debuted in 2003 as a World War II simulation and has sold over 500 million copies globally. Subsequent versions have delved into modern warfare and there is a live-action movie based on the game in production with Paramount Pictures.
In recent years, Zampella has been at the helm of the creation of the action adventure video games Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order and Star Wars Jedi: Survivor.
Geoff Keighley, video game journalist and co-creator of The Game Awards, said he was shocked to hear of Zampella's sudden death.
“Vince was an extraordinary person —- a gamer at heart, but also a visionary executive with a rare ability to recognize talent and give people the freedom and confidence to create something truly great,” Keighley wrote on social media on Monday.
“I’ll miss our dinners and long conversations. And while he created some of the most influential games of our time, I always felt he still had his greatest one ahead of him. It’s heartbreaking that we’ll never get to play it,” he added.
FILE - Three versions of Activision's Call Of Duty games are seen on sale at Best Buy in Mountain View, Calif., Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2011. Vincent Zampella, one of the creators behind such best-selling video games "Call of Duty," has died at 55. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma,File)
TORONTO (AP) — Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced on Monday that financier Mark Wiseman will serve as the country's next ambassador to the United States, an appointment that comes at a critical time in relations between the two major trading partners.
Wiseman will assume the role on Feb. 15 and will be involved in negotiations with the U.S. regarding the review of their free trade agreement.
“Mark Wiseman brings immense experience, contacts, and deep commitment at this crucial time of transformation of our relationship with the United States,” Carney said in a statement. “As a core member of our negotiating team, he will help advance the interests of Canadian workers, businesses, and institutions.”
Wiseman replaces Kirsten Hillman, who announced her resignation earlier this month.
The U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade pact, or USMCA, is up for review in 2026. U.S. President Donald Trump negotiated the deal during his first term in office and included a clause to possibly renegotiate it in 2026.
Wiseman, 55, ran the investment fund of the Canada Pension Plan and also managed equity funds at the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan. He is a friend of Carney, who ran the Bank of Canada from 2008 to 2013 and the Bank of England from 2013 to 2020.
In 2016 Wiseman became the senior managing director and global head of active equities at BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager.
Wiseman was once touted as a possible successor to BlackRock CEO Larry Fink, though his tenure at the company was cut short in 2019 when he departed after he failed to disclose a consensual relationship with a colleague.
He has since chaired the Alberta Investment Management Corp.
“Mark Wiseman is a business type with Wall Street connections whose profile is in sync with the current focus on trade and economic investment of both the Carney government and the Trump administration. Yet, Wiseman has no prior diplomatic experience," said Daniel Béland, a political science professor at McGill University in Montreal.
In October, Trump cut off tariff negotiations with Carney after the Ontario provincial government ran an antitariff advertisement in the U.S. It followed a spring of acrimony, since abated, over Trump’s insistence that Canada should become the 51st U.S. state.
Canada is the top export destination for 36 U.S. states. Nearly $3.6 billion Canadian ($2.7 billion) worth of goods and services cross the border each day.
About 60% of U.S. crude oil imports are from Canada, as are 85% of U.S. electricity imports.
Canada is also the largest foreign supplier of steel, aluminum and uranium to the U.S. and has 34 critical minerals and metals that the Pentagon is eager for and investing in for national security.
FILE - Canada Prime Minister Mark Carney speaks at City Hall in Ottawa, Ontario, on Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025. (Justin Tang/The Canadian Press via AP,File)
This undated photo provided by the Canadian Prime Minister's Office shows Mark Wiseman Canadian businessman, financier, and diplomat. (PMO/Canadian Press via AP)
This undated photo provided by the Canadian Prime Minister's Office shows Mark Wiseman Canadian businessman, financier, and diplomat. (PMO/Canadian Press via AP)
