Hollywood screenwriter, Stuart Beattie, who was responsible for Gears of War screenplay for New Line Cinema last year, has written the new Halo script. Word says that Microsoft like it and that they are discussing possible plans for it to be made.
Bettie beleives the old style Halo movie incaration is dead and is ready to release his vision, Halo: The Fall of Reach, a prequel to the first game. John Gaudiosi finds out what this vision is, in his interview for game daily. See the full transcript below.
And thanks to Blair Allan for sending us this news.
GameDaily BIZ: One of the big riffs about Halo early on from Hollywood producers I’ve spoken with was that the movie borrowed too much from Aliens…
Stuart Beattie: So? There’s a whole school of thought that says, “Brilliant!” (Laughs)
BIZ: Why do you think Microsoft wasn’t able to get this movie off the ground with Peter Jackson attached and 20th Century Fox and Universal Pictures on board?
SB: I wasn’t involved so I don’t know specifically why it fell apart, but I do know Hollywood is a numbers game. There’s certainly going to be an interest in a huge IP like Halo, but there’s going to be a point where the numbers just don’t add up any more. From what I had read, the budget kept going higher and higher and all of the back-ends were going to everyone but the people who were putting up the money to make the movie. And it just got to the breaking point because it was no longer fiscally responsible to make. These movies are a business.
“The audience is trying to figure out everything at the same time as the characters are. What are these aliens? Why are they killing us? What did we do? And realizing it’s all about this Halo ring. And then ending the movie where the first game begins.”
BIZ: Where does your Halo movie fit in with everything?
SB: The Halo movie in its initial incarnation is dead. No one is pursuing it any more. When the writers guild strike hit last year I suddenly had three months to write a Halo script. I always had this vision of doing Halo: The Fall of Reach, which is a prequel to the first game. It sets up a world 500 years in the future and we have colonies, there’s the UNSC, there’s the secret Spartan training program. And you see this six-year-old kid kidnapped in the middle of the night.
BIZ: And where does Master Chief fit into all of this?
SB: The character doesn’t start off as Master Chief. He starts off as John, who’s the kid that’s kidnapped and told he’s going to be a soldier. Anyone can connect with a kid kidnapped from his own home. You’re along for that journey. The Covenant comes along halfway through that movie. That gives you half the movie to really get to know everyone and care about everyone. And then when the Covenant come along, it’s the first time John sees a grunt or a jackal or an élite. The audience is trying to figure out everything at the same time as the characters are. What are these aliens? Why are they killing us? What did we do? And realizing it’s all about this Halo ring. And then ending the movie where the first game begins.
BIZ: What do you think gamers, who’ve been waiting a long time for a Halo movie, will get from your adaptation?
SB: I’ve been waiting a long time, too, as a fan. For fans, it will give a whole new perspective that they’ve never had before. And for non-fans it will introduce a whole new world, a time and a place with interesting characters. They can get into that and then they can go play the games because they know the whole backstory.
BIZ: You’ve talked about John getting kidnapped as a kid and a lot of peaceful time before the attacks. How much action is in your story?
SB: As a Halo fan what I want to see in a Halo movie is Master Chief kicking alien butt and we have plenty of that. But we’ve also got this great story that goes along with it. I always thought that was the way a Halo story should be so when I got time during the strike I decided to put my money where my mouth was. I did a bunch of concept art and boards and animatics. I did a presentation package and contacted Microsoft and Bungie. Joe Statton at Bungie (director of cinematics and writer of the three games) read it and loved it. I wasn’t part of the previous incarnation so I don’t know what they did with that script. But the book they commissioned, Halo: The Fall of Reach by Eric Nyland was a fantastic book.
BIZ: What’s the next step, now that you have a completed script?
SB: We’re now in discussions with Microsoft to see if we can get this made. I’m just a fan and I desperately want to see a Halo movie out there.
BIZ: Are you a go-to guy now in Hollywood for game adaptations?
SB: I get sent a lot of games. I’ve been sent games before that I don’t like and that I’ve turned down because I’m not the right guy for that job. That’s not going to be a good adaptation. You need to love the game. If I haven’t played the game, I say, “Can you give me a year?” I can’t just adapt a game for a film unless I’ve played it and liked it.
BIZ: And you obviously have that passion for the Halo games, right?
SB: At the end of the day you have to really be inspired. It can’t just be a story from the game. Once you go and make the movie that’s two years of your life and you have to be invested in the story. You gotta know you have the right story. I suspect (with the original Halo movie) they didn’t fully have the right story. They had three or four writers on it and that’s usually a sign that they didn’t have a story and they kept going around in circles.
BIZ: Thanks for your time. We hope your film gets made.
Comments 63 Responses to “Stuart Beattie in talks with Microsoft to get his new screenplay put into action”
We all hope your film gets made…
there are so many people who wants to watch the movie plz make it =)
Can’t Wait To See The Results Of This, But I Also Hope That Your Script Also Involved The Other Spartan’s And Tie ABit In Wiht The Book Fall of Reach Bringing In The Other Spartans such as Spartan-0119, and all the others.
Sorry Correction Spartan-051(Kurt-051)
PLEASE PLEASE MAKE THIS MOVIE PLEASE I HOPE THAT GOING TO BE OF THE FALL OF REACH BECAUSE ALL PEPOLE WANTS TO SE BEHIND OF HALO 1 I MEAN FALL OF REACH
rahulspartan on 10/8/2008 3:03 am | 414 seconds to edit
I think steve downes must dub whoever becomes chief, cuz i love the original master chief voice over. And I hope Mr. Stuart Beattie doesn’t get any detail wrong, since halo story has already been crumpled up by so many different writers who are willing to write only the way they take halo universe to be and that mismatches alot of details, though I hope SB have taken up the eric nylund’s point of view, and has not altered the original halo fall of reach novel in any way.
I think steve downes shall dub whoever becomes chief, cuz i love the original master chief voice over.
And I hope Mr. Stuart Beattie doesn’t get any detail wrong, since halo story has already been crumpled up by so many different writers who are willing to write only the way they take halo universe to be and that mismatches alot of details, though I hope SB have taken up the eric nylund’s point of view, and has not altered the original halo fall of reach novel in any way. Modify Comment Cancel
oops sorry for doubling the last post
[…] and poop… all at the same time!!!! Here’s some sweet news from my halo source over at halo.moviechronicles: Hollywood screenwriter, Stuart Beattie, who was responsible for Gears of War screenplay for New […]
If this movie is made and is a success, they may continue on to do the original Halo series.
Finnaly a hope for a halo movie! We have been waiting since 2005 or more! If this movie has the flood in it, it will be the best movie ive ever seen. But if not it will still be super awsome.
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PLEASE MAKE THAT MOVIE
And never show Master Chief face (as an adult). Keep some mystery, and use some of the original game soundtrack music in the movie. Its awesome!
If people are scared that fall of reach won’t cover enough backstory on the halo series, than just use the adaptation of contact harvest to created the covenant backstory.
This movie absolutely cannot be rated PG-13…that would make it terrible. Terrible. It must be a WAR MOVIE. Not some sci-fi Starship Troopers crap, or uninteresting characters of the Alien movies…it must be R. It must be violent.
The games or Rated M for a reason. Let’s see some Black Hawk Down/Saving Private Ryan action set in the future.
YES R ONLY!!!
Everyones with me on this one i know. Whoever can make this movie happen should DO IT!!!! we have all waited too long for a halo movie to be made!!!! come on microsoft and bungie its time you shut all us fans up and make this movie happen!!!!
I still can remember the day 3 or 4 years ago when i played first halo . i downloaded all wallpapers, intros… and i finded out that theres film in production. now 4 years later im still waiting but im a little disapointed. SO PLEASE MAKE THAT MOVIE.
This is absolutely amazing! When I heard they were making a Halo movie I almost peed myself. Talk about best movie ever created! At least it will be, if they stay true to the original plot and have TONS of action and crazy sweet graphics, then it should be an awesome movie. Although, I thought Eragon was gonna be a gr8 movie cuz the book was gr8, but nope. The writers screwed it up. Stewart Beattie we’re COUNTING on you. PLEASE DON’T DISAPPOINT! If the first one takes off, the others will follow. I’m hoping for a fall 2010/spring 2011 release date. Any sooner and it probably will have been rushed. Again, please, please do this movie right!
This is absolutely amazing! When I heard they were making a Halo movie I almost peed myself. Talk about best movie ever created! At least it will be, if they stay true to the original plot and have TONS of action and crazy sweet graphics, then it should be an awesome movie. Although, I thought Eragon was gonna be a gr8 movie cuz the book was gr8, but nope. The writers screwed it up. Stewart Beattie we’re COUNTING on you. PLEASE DON’T DISAPPOINT! If the first one takes off, the others will follow. I’m hoping for a fall 2010/spring 2011 release date. Any sooner and it probably will have been rushed. Again, please, please do this movie right!
This is absolutely amazing! When I heard they were making a Halo movie I almost peed myself. Talk about best movie ever created! At least it will be, if they stay true to the original plot and have TONS of action and crazy sweet graphics, then it should be an awesome movie. Although, I thought Eragon was gonna be a gr8 movie cuz the book was gr8, but nope. The writers screwed it up. Stewart Beattie we’re COUNTING on you. PLEASE DON’T DISAPPOINT! If the first one takes off, the others will follow. I’m hoping for a fall 2010/spring 2011 release date. Any sooner and it probably will have been rushed. Again, please, please do this movie right!
“This movie absolutely cannot be rated PG-13…that would make it terrible. Terrible. It must be a WAR MOVIE. Not some sci-fi Starship Troopers crap, or uninteresting characters of the Alien movies…it must be R. It must be violent. ”
I disagree that violence must be at the center of the movie.
What we need is a great movie, with a great story, characters, and script. Of course we need the intense and violent action, but to turn Halo into a gore fest would be stupid, cause its much more than that. Check the new Batman movies, they are not that violent and they are really good. Some things are better left unseen and unsaid.
I really really really want this to come out. I want to see Halo made into a movie-its story is too good. If it comes out, I’ll probably go into a coma of happiness.
I think that i speak for all halo fans when i say “good luck dawg, and for god sakes dont F*** it up”
“I disagree that violence must be at the center of the movie.
What we need is a great movie, with a great story, characters, and script. Of course we need the intense and violent action, but to turn Halo into a gore fest would be stupid, cause its much more than that. Check the new Batman movies, they are not that violent and they are really good. Some things are better left unseen and unsaid.”
Well it still needs to be R. And i also think that the story needs to be deep and good. But when it comes to the fighting… MAAAAN! Halo is war, war is grim.
The only way this would be a good movie is if it fully follows Nylund’s book that it is based on. There’s always adaptations for film but it has to keep the characters the same and the key moments of the book. The story of John and his luck. The training of the kids. The team building exercises. The training. That’s what people really identify in the book. The possibility that anyone of us could have been the child chosen to become a super soldier. Showing those things it was gives it a human relatable element.
Nylund’s book, The Fall of Reach, is the reason I played the Halo games and couldn’t wait to play each new one. And The Flood was boring. We played through the whole book in the first game. Why do we care about some retelling of it. Only reason to read it was to hear about the other stuff that was happening simultaneous with what we were doing in the game. And that wasn’t that interesting. First Strike was great also. Nylund is the key. If you collaborate with him your movie will be gold because his vision of the Halo Universe is golden!
I believe Chris has hit a very important point here. The Halo paperback series was made great by Eric Nylund. The other author’s interpretation of the Halo universe fell short, was not descriptive enough, and just didn’t involve me the way Nylunds writing did. He truly “gets” it when it comes to the depth and sheer scope of the Halo Universe. He brings you along for his journey with a feeling of living it in the present and you can’t help but keep reading. I think a collaboration between Stuart’s vision and Nylund’s vision would yield the most beneficial adaptation onto the big screen that we, as fans, could hope for. Either way though, I’m excited to see this finally move toward the purchase of a pair of movie tickets to go and see Halo!
Please never show the Chief’s face.
Except when he’s a kid, that’s ok if they show how he looks on Reach. But as an adult, keep it secret.
Yeah i have to agree with Adam and Chris, the author Eric Nylund is particularly important to make the movie give its full wow factor, and collaboration between their visions should make this happen if possible. If not then im still excited to see the movie regardless ^^. Wonder who will play Dr Halsey
PLEASE MAKE THE FREAKIN’ MOVIE ALREADY!!! STUART BEATTIE, YOU ARE A GENIUS AND I BELIEVE YOUR SCRIPT IS AWESOME! BUT BUNGIE DOESNT KNOW WHAT THEY ARE DOING WITH THE MOVIE, AND I DONT TRUST THEM!!!! Hope fully they are smart enough to go along with Beatie’s script…
Ok, Feb, what is wrong with showing Master Chief’s face? He is ownage nevertheless, and he is the main character. You dont show his face every once in a while, he will become a supporting character. That was the problem for the first movie, and that is why it utterly, failed.
You are wrong. It failed because of the script and most of all because of money issues.
Look at Star Wars. Did you see Vader’s face in the old trilogy? Not once until the very end, and probably it would have been better to keep it secret.
Lucas ruined SW with the prequels, explaining everything (midi-chlorians, Vader, etc). The magic is gone.
We never see The Chief’s face in the games, why should we see him in the movies?
I guess your one dumb kid who would like to see Shia Leboeuf playing The Chief. lol
Though the movie’s hit anyway but I agree with myself,chris and adam. If the movie is to be made it needs to have the nylund-beattie vision and Martin O’Donnell music…and i’m sure its gonna beat the hell out of Harry Potter/Spiderman/batman or any such franchise, after all its a microsoft property, but i must say.. they have dissapointed me by delaying the (would be)greatest movie of all time.
Well.. Sounds like this movie won’T be made afterall.
\guys Bungi dosnet own the halo series anymore
they sold it after Halo odst(Recon) and it sound like the could easily screw this up. by the way if you put a freken love sory into this i will trak this guy down and rip his balls off this is halo not Pearl harbor(but the acion in that moivie was pretty good)i also think that this has to be rated R but have some plot in it
like they said “halo is war, war is grim” people die in war … lets se it in the FUTURE:)
Ps they should never show MC’s face
maybe in the end he can take off his helmet with his bac to the camera(just for efect so you never see anything) and they have to use that chicogodj guy who did master chifes voice in the game (yes he was a DJ)anyone else and you F@%#$ up the entire movie
imdb has some info on halo the movie. it says it will be released in 2012
I don’t think that’s new info…
1) Need Linda Sam and Kate (I think that’s their names, been a bit since i read the book…).
2) Nylund did something special with two cinematics in mid spaceflight. One was Keys fast-acting on using the gravitational orbit of the planet to detonate a tac-nuke on a covenant ship, and the other was near the end of the tale, where a tacnuke detonates WITHIN the covenant shielding. Both of these would “pep” up the space parts.
3) It seems as though Hollywood is reaching for innovation nowadays. I really hope you do a good job and give the MPA something to work with for a while (gnaw their teeth on as it were).
–just a fan
1) Its Linda, Sam and KELLY =)
2) YES
3) Hollywood keeps repeating the same formula imo
they need to hurry up on the movie man i am dieing to see the movie.i wonder what it going to be like. I no it going to be good.I wonder is we might get to see master chife face. Do you think me might see is face. I do think we might get to see his face. well got to go!!!!!!!!!!
make the movie its worth it
I hope we never get to see his face.
for all we know master cheif could be black
and why does it matter if he is black… i dont care, i just need that movie made or i’ll try and make the movie myself, i’ve done some documentries before and they were hit, the only problem is that they wont sell the movie rights for anything less than $300 million or maybe they wont even sell it.
Anyway, if anyone else direct the movie, it should be steven spielberg and music director should be Martin O’Donnell.
The article needs to get the name spellings straight– it’s “Nylund” and “Staten”.
ive heard about this. anyone know when its due release date is?
I would love to see the movie. The game it self is a wonder and full of EVERYTHING! This has to be a movie. There’s to many people wanting to see this movie being made that the producers well have to make it. come on it just adds up.
please note:
the previous movie was due to come out 2012. this is well and truly because of the spec effects. I don’t think Beattie (is that how you spell his name?) is stupid enough to spend a billion dollars on effects. make ‘em good but don’t make em crap like old star trek’s.
and don’t base anything on star trek.
the voice over for chief NEEDS to be done by that guy (sorry dude, i don’t know your name) from the games. the music has to be martin O’Donnell and MOST IMPORTANTLY WE WILL NEVER HAVE TO SEE CHIEFS FACE ‘cept when he’s a kid and in his mid teens.
make sure you take up less than 30 min in the training sessions (altogether) anymore and the movies gonna get boring.
i know how hard it is to represent peoples thoughts without use of words. so when it comes to the bit at the beginning with Keyes and Katherine Halsey (never, ever, ever call her Kathy) aim for awkwardness and clumsiness not mind reading Keyes’ mind; likewise when it comes to Cortana’s reaction (and affection) to chief make sure you aim for words not mind reading. and don’t even bother getting us to try and psychic what anyone’s thinking. you’ve got to explain to the audience what the hell is going on.
since you aren’t spending more than 30 min with training i suggest you explain chiefs feelings towards his teammates (especially SAM ‘cos he’s chiefs BFF and he gets totally powned in that bgood luck. if you want anything more from us fans please contact me at manish_really_rox@hotmail.com
ps: i know kirumy is a ps3 user but he (i) only play ps3 because it’s a lot better than 360 (face it 360’s too old to handle this sorta thing and killzone 2 was ps3’s starting ground into it’s forays of extreme htech blue-ray technology
I totally agree with your vision man. But since there are a lot of dumbasses in Hollywood, there is a great chance they will totally ignore it.
I think that this movie must be maid in the vision created by the book. The producers cannot add their own “effect” to the movie. It must stay to the storyline that was created by the games and the books. Beattie and Nyuland’s vision is perfect for the Halo movie. They get how to make an interesting prequal that answers all the fans questions and still ties in with the games and the books. oh yes, the movie is set for 2012. It might and will hopefully come out sooner but do not get your hopes up. I am dying to see this movie just as much as the rest of you and the delay of this epic project is killing me a little inside. Beattie is one of our last saving graces.
I apologize for any spelling errors in my previous submission. I hope you do not think I am an imbisil.
I apologize for the spelling mistakes I have made on my previous submission. I hope you all do not think I am an imbisil.
The 2012 release date means nothing… There is no confirmation about the making of a movie, its only a rumor.
OMG people make this movie already, i am tired of waiting and waiting and u know what will be mess up, to wait that long and then the movie is not good at all, that will get me really mad, and yes i do want to know what happen to the other spartans, dont only put spartan-117 put all of them, well hurry up and make the damn movie.
this movie better not cater to “the whole family”. it needs to appeal to those hardcore halo fans too. i hope the producers and directors arent just focused on making as much money as possible because the movie would become some bland shapless formless sold out puddle of mud.
Halo: The Fall of Reach is an excellent book, by far my favorite of the Eric Nylund written series. With the recent speculation regarding Halo: Reach, I can’t help but wonder if these two are tied in together? You know, a movie and game interacting at certain points. Watch the movie, something happens and you don’t know why but if you play the game… then you find out what happened, hell, you’ll probably be holding the damn gun that caused it. I like the idea of this type of Halo movie being done with the Fall of Reach. Like it was previously stated, it has everything you need for a successful movie. Halo experience is not required. I can’t help but feel a slight tug from Bungie on this though… they knew we would open up Google and type in Halo: Reach.
if you do the movie about the fall of reach you should show it through the eyes of the marines this could show a hole new prospective of halo becasue with all seen halo through the eyes of the master chief
if you make a halo movie about the fall of reach please do it through the battle hardend eyes of the unsc marines because this would add a hole new prospective to the story line and we will be aqble to see how the marines fort in these great wars becasue we have al seen halo through the eyes of the master chief in the halo games.
if you make a halo movie about the fall of reach please do it through the battle hardend eyes of the unsc marines because this would add a hole new prospective to the story line and we will be aqble to see how the marines fort in these great wars becasue we have al seen halo through the eyes of the master chief in the halo games
please make this movie we still want it i hope it will be friekin awesome!
Listen to make a true masterpiece of halo (in other words do it justice) those basterds in hollywood just need to read ALL of the BOOKS and play ALL of the GAMES they can pu what ever “creative spin” they want as long as they truly grasp the feeling of the situation the hoplessness the brife triumphs the anguish of “lives lost” and “lives spent” and the most important element of all.….. the subtle undertones of religious persecution as releated to early chatholosism.
…please excuse spelling for i am retarded lolz
Master Chief= OWNEGE LEVEL 100%
I dont trust this guy… He claims hes doing things from a new perspective, from an angle no Halo fan has seen before.. To me, from reading that, it seems like hes just taking Nylund’s story and turning it into pictures. Sure thats not a bad thing, The fall of Reach was an awsome book, dont get me wrong.
My main fear is; Its taken so long to get this film going, and so much hype has come and gone. I do not want to be dissapointed. Im sure almost every other Halo fan who has played all the games to death, read all the books, and knows the ins and outs of the halo universe, will be furious if this guy gets even the slightest detail wrong.
He claims to be a big fan of the Halo games, yet he cant give a straight answer to the last question.
Peoples post on here, are correct. Like I said, its the attention to detail that matters, and as some have rightly pointed out; the atmostphere.
If the guy who wrote this, or the director/whatever, reads this:
DO A DAMN GOOD F*CKING JOB OR THERE WILL BE HELL TO PAY!!!
And I mean that in the nicest possible way.