Production may begin this fall on the long-awaited Halo TV series backed by Steven Spielberg.
Microsoft's Halo TV series has been inching forward since it was first announced in 2013, but it may finally be close to entering production. According to Production Weekly (via Pursue News), production on the series is set to begin this fall, which could potentially put the series in line to air at some point in 2019.
Outside of its announcement, details on the Halo series have been light. We know that Steven Spielberg is attached to the live-action project as a producer and Showtime will air it, but not much else. Speaking to TV Guide in January, Showtime's president of programming, Gary Levine, confirmed that Halo "is absolutely still in development, still moving forward and I'm encouraged by what we've seen so far." Lifting the veil further, Levine seemed adamant that the show will find an audience outside of gamers. "It's still live action, and it will definitely satisfy the fans of Halo and I think also satisfy the drama audiences of Showtime," he said.
A lot of things have changed around Microsoft's Xbox strategy since the Halo series was announced at E3 2013, but it seems the company is still determined to bring the live-action show to fruition. Given the backing of Spielberg and Showtime, the series certainly has some weight behind it. But we'll have to see whether the game's sci-fi action and sprawling lore will translate to network success.