Yes. The Associated Press reported on March 31, 2025, that Jack Black played more than 100 hours of Minecraft while on the set of A Minecraft Movie. The report gives no exact total. Black also said he had played the game occasionally with his sons before taking the role of Steve.
When and why Black played Minecraft
Black was already familiar with the game through his sons. “My boys were playing it, and I wanted to speak their language,” he told the Associated Press. AP reported that he then spent more than 100 hours playing during the film’s production. The account does not say that playing was a formal studio requirement.
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Black said he watched YouTube videos for survival advice, including how to get through the first night in the Overworld. “I put the work in,” he said. “You got to put the days of work in. Watch YouTube videos to get some tips on how to survive that first night in the Overworld. I was pretty versed in it.” The AP report is the source for Black’s comments and the playtime claim.
What Black played on set
Torfi Frans Ólafsson, Mojang’s senior director, described Xbox consoles and private Minecraft servers for the cast and crew in an interview with Variety, as recounted by Windows Central. Ólafsson said Black became the most passionate player on set, gathering resources and searching for lapis lazuli. “He was just completely manic, hoarding stuff in the mines, searching for lapis lazuli because he liked the way it sounds.”
#1 Best Overall
- Minecraft is a game about placing blocks and going on adventures
- Explore randomly generated worlds and build amazing things from the simplest of homes to the grandest of castles
- Play in creative mode with unlimited resources or mine deep into the world in survival mode, crafting weapons and armor to fend off the dangerous mobs
- Play on the go in handheld or tabletop modes
- Includes Super Mario Mash-Up, Natural Texture Pack, Biome Settlers Skin Pack, Battle & Beasts Skin Pack, Campfire Tales Skin Pack; Compatible with Nintendo Switch only
Windows Central also reported Ólafsson’s account that Black was initially considered for a talking-pig character before being switched to Steve late in development. Ólafsson summed up the choice this way: “This is not my Steve or your Steve — this is Jack Black’s Steve.” These are Ólafsson’s reported recollections, not additional comments from Black.
What “more than 100 hours” does—and does not—tell us
- Supported: AP reported that Black played for more than 100 hours on set during production of A Minecraft Movie.
- Not specified: AP did not publish an exact hour total. The reports also do not establish which Minecraft edition or Xbox model he used.
- Not a separate eyewitness confirmation: Windows Central’s production details come from Ólafsson’s Variety interview. Insider Gaming also summarized that interview, so its retelling is not an independent first-hand account.
The game behind the film anecdote
Minecraft is an open-ended game built around activities including survival, mining, farming, building and multiplayer play. AP’s March 2025 story said the game was released in 2009, reached a million players within two years, and had sold more than 235 million copies across platforms. Those are figures reported by AP in 2025, not a current 2026 sales count.
Quick Recap
Best Value
- DELUXE COLLECTION — Includes Minecraft: Java & Bedrock Edition, three Bedrock add-ons, three exclusive Character Creator items, and 700 Minecoins.
- CREATE YOUR WORLD — Build whatever you imagine in an infinite world that’s unique in every playthrough.
- EXPLORE AND CRAFT — Discover biomes, resources, and mobs, then craft your way through a sandbox world filled with surprises.
- SURVIVE THE ADVENTURE — Face mysterious foes, travel across exciting landscapes, and venture into perilous dimensions.
- PLAY TOGETHER — Play cross-platform with friends in Bedrock Edition on console, mobile, and PC, or join community servers in Java Edition on PC, Mac, and Linux. Online console multiplayer requires a platform-specific subscription (sold separately).
Rank #4
- CREATE YOUR WORLD — Build whatever you imagine in an infinite world that is unique in every playthrough.
- EXPLORE AND CRAFT — Discover biomes, resources, and mobs, then craft your way through a sandbox world full of surprises.
- SURVIVAL ADVENTURES — Face mysterious foes, travel across varied landscapes, and venture into perilous dimensions.
- PLAY TOGETHER — Play solo or join friends in local split-screen and cross-platform play across console, mobile, and PC. Online multiplayer supports up to 8 players.
- COMMUNITY PLAY — Connect with players on community servers, or subscribe to Realms Plus (sold separately) to play with up to 10 friends on a private server.
Rank #3
Rank #2
- Explore randomly-generated worlds and build amazing things from the simplest of homes to the grandest of castles
- Play in Creative Mode with unlimited resources or mine deep into the world in survival mode, crafting weapons and armour to fend off the dangerous mobs
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