It appears as though Showtime is moving forward with their new television series based on the popular video game franchise Halo. At the Television Critics Association, Showtime’s president of programming, Gary Levine, took a minute to update the world on the statue os Halo, and the direction the studio will want to take the series.
First-and-foremost, Master Chief will be one of the lead characters in the series. Levine also goes on to say that the studio is well aware that his face is never shown in the games, and says making that work on camera is “a key question and an important part of our series is all I say”.
Image: 343 Industries
The script comes from Kyle Killen, and Rupert Wyatt is set to direct. Levine adds that Killen’s idea for the series is not a repeat of any of the stories from the games:
“I think it’s about the writing. I think Kyle Killen is a really deep interesting character writer. The premise for us was always it needs to stand alongside our other Showtime shows and look like it belongs there while at the same time servicing the fans of this enormous franchise. We don’t worry about the odds. We just plow ahead and we’re very optimistic.
It is a new story, but we are being incredibly respectful of the canon and working with Microsoft 343 people to be sure we don’t violate any of that.
Image: 343 Industries, Creative Assembly
We made a conscious decision to hire a writer not known for sci-fi or big battle movies because that’s already baked into the Halo franchise and we will service that but we also wanted to make sure we were getting underneath the armor of the Spartans to the human drama, so it felt like it belonged on Showtime.
Our hope is it will appeal to Halo fans and Showtime drama fans.”
Image: Microsoft, 343 Industries
Does this mean that there is a chance that Killen adapted a storyline from the novel series, which follows that games but does not retell the stories? (Well all of them except one.) It would be great to see the books adapted, as they actually begin when the Spartan supersoldiers are children. It also follows them as they train, and continues past where the games ended.
The books also flesh out secondary character backstories.
Image: Microsoft, Bungie
Showtime CEO David Nevins stated that the Halo series is “futuristic space-based science fiction” and NOT fantasy like HBO’s Game of Thrones. He goes on to say:
“There’s been one iconic franchise in my opinion in the history of television in that category and that’s Star Trek. Probably 10 or 12 of the top 20 movies of all time are futuristic sci-fi. It’s weird that television hasn’t turned up those kinds of franchises… Battlestar Galactica. I give great credit especially the second time around.”
Image: Bungie Studios
Fans of the franchise will have to wait a bit for the release of the series. Levine says: “It’s an enormous undertaking, so I would say probably in 2020.” The script and casting are not yet complete. The big question is whether Steve Downes will reprise the voice of Master Chief for the series.
Image: Microsoft, 343 Industries
What battle should Showtime feature in their Halo television series? Let us know in the comments below!
