While it's undoubtedly one of Microsoft's biggest video game properties, Halo has had a rough time branching out into the live-action film and television scene, despite having a ready-made fan base and a wealth of mythology and lore to draw from.
That's all about to change. US-based, premium cable channel Showtime has announced that a 10-part live-action series is officially in the works, in a collaboration that also involves Halo developer 343 Industries and Amblin Television.
Kyle Killen (Awake) is onboard as executive producer, writer and showrunner of the series (working title Halo), while Rupert Wyatt (Rise of the Planet of the Apes) is attached to direct multiple episodes and also executive produce the hour-long series.
If you like it, then you shoulda put a ring(world) on it
Though previous Halo shows Forward Unto Dawn and NightFall stumbled due to web series production values and questionable writing, Showtime president and CEO David Nevins promises that the new show will be in another league entirely.
“Halo is our most ambitious series ever, and we expect audiences who have been anticipating it for years to be thoroughly rewarded,” said Nevins.
He continued, "Kyle Killen’s scripts are thrilling, expansive and provocative, Rupert Wyatt is a wonderful, world-building director, and their vision of Halo will enthral fans of the game while also drawing the uninitiated into a world of complex characters that populate this unique universe.”
The new Halo series will enter production in early 2019, so expect the Master Chief to invade your living room later that year. As for which services will be showing the series outside of the US, we do know that the Australian streaming service Stan has already announced that it will be fast-tracking the series as part of its partnership with Showtime.
