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The cowboy hero of Overwatch might receive a name change soon, in the wake of the recent Activision Blizzard lawsuit. The character shares a name with Jesse McCree, a former Blizzard employee allegedly involved in workplace misconduct. Because of this, some Overwatch players have asked that McCree be renamed so he's no longer associated with the real person.
Separate from the designer, the name McCree functions as a reference to Mad Dog McCree, an early, Old West-themed video game. As a character, McCree has very much formed his own identity, with his sharpshooting prowess, signature, drawly voice lines, and just-stepped-out-of-Tombstone look. That said, his name is almost certainly connected to that same developer.
In a 2017 interview with WIRED, former Overwatch writer Michael Chu explained the team was struggling to come up with "the perfect cowboy name."
"Someone suggested, 'Hey, what about the name Jesse McCree?' Jesse is a designer at Blizzard. [...] We kind of stack-ranked 'Jesse McCree' against every other name we'd come up with, and at the end of it, we still thought 'Jesse' McCree was the best cowboy name. [...] Jesse had to sign over his name to us, and so now he will forever be linked to our favorite cowboy character."
"Forever" may not be so. Overwatch esports casters are already avoiding saying McCree’s name, and the optics of not changing it could be bad for Blizzard. There are plenty of in-game reasons the writers could have McCree change his name - the biggest being his desire to run from his criminal past - and there are already a few potential names he could use instead, either with in-game justification or in reference to the character’s real-world backstory.
Overwatch Lore Hints "Joel" Might Already Be McCree's Real Name
There has been at least one hint in Overwatch that Jesse McCree is not the character’s birth name. In a dialogue interaction, Sombra calls him McCree and derisively adds, "If that is your real name." McCree responds, "Don’t know what you heard, but my name’s not Joel." There are differing theories on where McCree could have come up with "Joel," as it’s not immediately apparent if that's a reference to in-game lore or a shout-out to pop culture. There is a famous Western actor named Joel McCrea, though it could even be a reference to The Last of Us' Joel Miller.
There is a case to be made for this being a reference to McCree's true identity, however. In the game's canon, there is already a "Joel" - a blogger named Joel Morricone. Given that McCree’s design is inspired by many characters in Spaghetti Westerns and that Ennio Morricone is a well-known composer of Spaghetti Western themes, the coincidence seems too convenient. Whether Joel Morricone is McCree’s real name or a nom de plume, it’s an appropriate Western name for a gunslinging cowboy.
"Logann" Would Call Back To Overwatch's Design Phase
The name "Logann," meanwhile, could give a nod to the character’s design origin. McCree appears to be inspired by a piece of concept art once created by Chris Metzen of a character called Prospector Logann. According to Blizzard Watch, a team at Blizzard later revived this character in concept art, pictured above, for a Starcraft MMO that never got out of the planning stages. This Logann art makes the character look older than McCree, but otherwise, it’s an unmistakable resemblance, right down to the belt buckle.
While McCree, a former criminal turned hero, plays a very different role in the Overwatch story than Logann would have in Starcraft (being a member of the Terran Confederacy, the symbol on his arm in the concept art has an uncomfortable likeness to the real-world racist iconography of the Confederate Battle Flag), he bears Logann's creative DNA. Even regardless of the origin, the vibe of the name would work well with McCree's design, whether it be made into his first or last name.
McCree Could Take His Voice Actor's Name, "Mercer"
Some fans have asked for McCree’s name to be changed to that of Matt Mercer, McCree's voice actor in Overwatch. Mercer is more closely associated with the character than the real-life Jesse McCree, and he is well-liked by the Overwatch community. While the team chose the Blizzard developer’s name because it sounded like a good cowboy moniker, the name "Mercer" isn't a bad cowboy name, either; there was a Western actor named Warren Mercer Oates, for example. If it’d be too strange for the character to share the exact name as his actor, the hero formerly known as McCree could have a more "cowboy" first name, such as Wyatt, Roy, or John.
Regardless of whether Blizzard chooses to rename McCree, he'll likely remain a staple of the Overwatch series. He's set to appear in the upcoming Overwatch 2, and Blizzard has already revealed a new visual design for the character in the sequel.