Halo movie to go ahead without Universal and Fox

Microsoft still committed to making the feature

23 October 2006 14:12 GMT / By Amber Maitland

Last week it was announced that movie studios Universal and Fox had decided to pull out of a project to turn the Xbox video game Halo into a feature film.

Microsoft has since released a statement to confirm that it is still planning on going ahead with the film, together with game developer Bungie. Peter Jackson and Fran Walsh, the executive producers, are also still on board.

Apparently Universal and Fox had demanded greater control over the film, which was refused to them, as the original agreement gave creative control Microsoft Game Studios and Bungie.

The statement from Microsoft reads: “We are disappointed that Universal and Fox wanted to significantly renegotiate the financial points of the deal. But the Halo franchise is hugely popular and our goal remains the same – to find a partner that shares our passion and will creatively collaborate with us to best represent the story and spirit of the Halo franchise”.

Developer Bungie added, “Suffice it to say that Peter (Jackson), Neill, Fran (Walsh) and Microsoft are as excited and dedicate as ever and WETA continues the pre-production process”.