Halo fans have waited a very long time to see a live-action version of their favourite franchise, with the likes of Steven Spielberg, Peter Jackson and Neill Blomkamp attached to big screen versions at various points.
Here’s five huge reasons we’re so excited...
Steven Spielberg is involved
This is a major coup for Microsoft – with Steven Spielberg showrunning the Halo TV series, it couldn’t be in safer hands.
Spielberg isn’t just the man responsible for some of the most exciting movies of the past 30 years, he’s been involved in some of the most critically acclaimed television series, too. Imagine Band of Brothers in spacesuits with the tension of Jaws, and you’re on the way to picturing the potential of this show.
Microsoft have huge ambitions
Microsoft Studios’ boss Phil Spencer has said that: “I think much like Halo begat the Xbox. I think the Halo TV series can have a pretty dramatic impact on how people think about television.”
Changing the way people think about television? We like the sound of that.
TV habits have changed hugely in the past few years – appointment TV has shifted online, with fans watching their favourite shows on Netflix, before heading straight to Twitter to talk about it. If Microsoft can tap into this seismic zeitgeist shift, and add some innovations of their own, they could be a major player.
Speaking of innovations...
It’s going to be interactive
Microsoft are planning on using Xbox One’s innovative interactivity options to enhance the show. President of Xbox Entertainment Studios Nancy Tellem has said “Unlike developing a show and adding interactivity after the fact, we are going to start from the beginning.”
Whether you want to live-Tweet what you’re watching on the screen you’re watching it on, or pull up fact files on your favourite characters, or even edit in deleted scenes, the possibilities are limitless.
It’s got the same budget as Game of Thrones
In a recent interview with Variety, Tellem revealed that Halo will have the same production values as Game of Thrones.
This is huge – Game of Thrones costs an average of 6 million dollars per episode (with the pilot coming in at around 10 million dollars), which adds up to 60 million per season.
Which obviously sounds like a lot of money – but when you factor in Peter Jackson’s planned movie version was budgeted at around 75 million dollars, this could end up being a bit of a bargain.
It’s only the beginning…
Phil Spencer announced at the Tokyo Game Show that: “[The joint Microsoft/Spielberg team has] literally hundreds of ideas that they are incubating right now. We will have some new announcement for TV shows coming pretty soon."
This is a major commitment from Microsoft and Spielberg – which means that if the Halo TV show is successful, it will kick-start a revolution – with a major new studio moving into the space just below your telly.
And with the scale of talent, ambition, and budget behind the project, we see no reason for the Halo TV show to not succeed. These are exciting times for gaming fans and telly-addicts alike.
