Halo is an upcoming film based on the video game series under the same name, developed by Bungie Studios. The script for the movie was written by Alex Garland(1). The movie will be developed and released by Universal Pictures and 20th Century Fox, under the creative oversight of Microsoft. Former Columbia president Peter Schlessel has been selected as producer, and Peter Jackson will be the executive producer. Shooting has yet to begin, but due to the graphic content of the source material, the film will more than likely receive a PG-13 or R rating.
Microsoft developed the picture outside the studio system paying Garland $1 million to develop the script and hiring Peter Schlessel, a former executive at Columbia Pictures (Sony Pictures) to develop the project which is Microsoft's first entry into the movie business(2). The film is also unconventional in that Bungie Studios, the original developer of the game, retains significant creative control over the content of the film through Microsoft.
Microsoft delivered the script to the major film studios on June 6, 2005 with employees at Creative Artists Agency delivering the script dressed as Master Chief. E! Online reported that Microsoft set conditions such as Microsoft retaining merchandising rights, a $75 million budget and Microsoft having the rights to examine rough cuts of the movie. These conditions meant that many of the major film studios weren't interested in the project despite the success of the video game.
In late August 2005, an agreement was reached with Fox and Universal Studios. Under this agreement, Fox and Universal will pay Microsoft $5 million against 10% of the movie's gross(3). In regard to marketing, Universal owns all US rights and 20th Century Fox has marketing rights in other territories.
On September 17, 2005, IMDB posted that Uwe Boll had been chosen as the director of this project. Bungie Software later indicated this to be false. On September 21, 2005, IMDB removed the statement after creating controversy with die hard fans of the game series. Another rumor then began to circulate that Peter Jackson, who directed the blockbuster The Lord of the Rings trilogy and King Kong, would direct. However, on October 4, 2005, Universal Studios announced that Jackson would be the executive producer for the film along with partner Fran Walsh, with Weta Digital providing the special effects -- all information which Bungie.net(4)later confirmed.
In early November, 2005, Latino Review, a generally respected source for movie script reviews, claimed to have obtained a copy of the Halo movie screenplay. Subsequently, a detailed synopses of the alleged script was published on their web site, focusing in detail on the plot and action at the beginning of the movie(5). Some have noted that the script review merely follows the original story set out in the Halo video game and Halo novel The Flood.
In mid-December of 2005, perhaps in reaction to a update on Bungie.net(4), IMDB posted that Guillermo del Toro had been chosen to direct the film, but later it was revealed that he was only "in talks". Statements attributed to Del Toro reveal that he is continuing his work on Hellboy 2, and would be happy to work on the Halo movie if the project is still available once Hellboy 2 is completed, but it is likely that another director will be found before then. As of March 2006, there has been no official confirmation that any director has signed on to helm the project.
In early April of 2006, fans noticed that IMDb had updated the Halo movie's page to include Alex Proyas as director. Proyas has previously directed a few critically acclaimed movies including The Crow, Dark City, and I, Robot. No official statement has yet been made confirming or denying Proyas' involvement.
This movie is expected to be released sometime in 2007. Filming is likely to take place in New Zealand. Special effects company WETA Digital is based in New Zealand, and Peter Jackson has used the country's scenic locales to great effect in past works—most notably with The Lord of the Rings trilogy.
As of 6 May 2006, the Halo movie title on IMDB has changed back to just "Halo". Whether or not the title change was official or not is currently not known. Halo cinematics director and story scripter Joseph Staten, in a 22 April seminar at Northwestern University in Evanston, IL, said that the Halo movie would not be a videogame adaptation, adding credibility to the temporary title change to "Fall of Reach", suggesting that the movie would be based off the eponymous novel and not directly off the videogame itself.
In April 2006, IMDb listed Kevin Allsworth as a rumored choice for the lead role of Master Chief. Allsworth has never done anything involved with film before, and is not a well-known actor. Lack of any information about him led many fans to believe that he is only a made-up person.
