Overwatch Executive Producer Chacko Sonny is leaving Blizzard Entertainment on Friday, according to an Activision spokesman talking to Bloomberg.
A Blizzard spokesman confirmed to Bloomberg that Chacko, who oversees the whole Overwatch franchise and development for the sequel, will leave the company. "[Blizzard] has been an absolute privilege and one of the best experiences of my career," Sonny said in an email to staff, according to Bloomberg.
Blizzard also says that Overwatch 2 is nearing the end of production at the time of Sonny's exit. An update on Overwatch 2 will be provided later this month, and the timeline on it may have shifted considering Overwatch 2 was reportedly still years out from launch.
Activision Blizzard is currently facing a lawsuit from the state of California for sexual harassment and discrimination. It was also recently discovered that the SEC is investigating harassment at Activision and the EEO has been investigating Activision since May 2020.
While Sonny's departure could be unrelated to the investigations, this is far from the first high-level departure at Activision. Blizzard president J. Allen Brack, Blizzard's chief legal officer Claire Hart, and Activision CPO Claudine Naughton have all exited or plan to exit the company in the months following the lawsuit.
Overwatch 2 director Jeff Kaplan also left the company, but that was in April 2021 before California's lawsuit was issued in July.
Activision Blizzard employees recently filed an unfair labor practice lawsuit against the company for harassing employees attempting to speak out against the company's culture.
Petey Oneto is a freelance writer for IGN.