Halo is as influential a video game as you can get. The franchise helped shape the FPS genre and popularized online gaming, and with its popularity came toys, books, and board games. A movie or TV show was almost inevitable, and even though Steven Spielberg announced the show back in 2013, the long-awaited show will probably start making some headway this year.
PursueNews recently announced that Halo has appeared in Issue 1083 of Production Weekly, a subscription-based listing that “provides professionals working in the film and television industries with the most comprehensive production breakdown available.” According to the site, the show is still under production and will likely start shooting sometime around Fall 2018.
Since Spielberg is a showrunner, the project has attracted several producers from Spielberg’s own Amblin Television. Apparently Justin Falvey (Falling Skies, The Borgias, Gravity), Darryl Frank (The Americans, American Gothic, Under the Dome), and Alex Maggioni (Spin City, Battery Park) will help produce the show.
Earlier this year, Showtime president of programming Gary Levine told TV Guide the Halo show “is absolutely still in development, still moving forward and I’m encouraged by what we’ve seen so far.” Production Weekly’s latest issue seems to confirm Levine’s statement. Levine also went on to say the show will “satisfy fans of Halo and I think also satisfy the drama audiences of Showtime.” Given the producers have worked on programs such as The Borgias and Under the Dome, the show could potentially live up to Levine’s promises.
Spielberg’s Halo TV show might be the first time the franchise has been tackled by a large American studio, it is not the first tv/movie adaptation of the game. Back in 2009, numerous anime studios, including Studio 4°C, Production I.G, Toei Animation, and Bones teamed up to create the anthology film Halo Legends; Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn is a 2012 live-action web series designed to tie into and market the game, and the comedy web series Red vs. Blue started back in 2003 as skits filmed in the Halo multiplayer mode and is still airing to this day.
While we should consider this news as a rumor until we hear from any of the parties involved, we are still excited to hear the Halo TV series could finally progress later this year.
