Halo TV series coming to Showtime

Its official: Showtime has ordered Halo, one of the most popular video game franchises, to a live-action series

The original Halo video game released for Xbox on November 15, 2001. The Halo franchise has sold over 77 millions copies worldwide and has grossed over $5 billion in sales. There have been spinoffs such as novels, comics, and web series. Nearing two decades later and the first-person shooter, science fiction franchise is finally coming to our T.V. screens.

The game that introduced gamers to a universal war between humanity and alien species such as the Flood, the Covenant, and the Forerunners, has been given a 10-episode series with the working title: Halo.

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Creator of the Awake TV series, Kyle Killen, will serve as the showrunner, while Rupert Wyatt (Rise of the Planet of the Apes) will executively produce and direct a handful of episodes.

Little to nothing has been announced about the show’s plot, nor the cast. The press release stated that the series will be:

"“dramatizing an epic 26th-century conflict between humanity and an alien threat known as the Covenant. Halo will weave deeply drawn personal stories with action, adventure and a richly imagined vision of the future”.”"

Will the show cast Master Chief, the protagonist of the Halo series? He’s over 7-feet tall and almost never shows his face. Will original characters be created as the main focus of the show? While there’s plenty to work with from the games, there’s also opportunity to expand on the Halo universe.

President and CEO of Showtime Networks, David Nevins, stated that:

"“Halo is our most ambitious series ever, and we expect audiences who have been anticipating it for years to be thoroughly rewarded. In the history of television, there simply has never been enough great science fiction. Kyle Killen’s scripts are thrilling, expansive and provocative, Rupert Wyatt is a wonderful, world-building director, and their vision of Halo will enthrall fans of the game while also drawing the uninitiated into a world of complex characters that populate this unique universe.”"

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Showtime won’t have a difficult time getting fans of the games to tune in to at least the pilot episode. It will be up to the showrunners and writers to bring this incredible universe to life and repeat the magic that Bungie struck seventeen years ago.

The release date is yet to be announced but is expected to begin production in early 2019.