Skip to main content

Jackson, Microsoft Suspend Halo Film

Barely a week after Universal and Fox pulled out of a co-financing and distribution deal for a movie based on Microsoft’s Halo video game franchise, word comes from producers Peter Jackson and Fran Walsh’s WingNut Films that the studio and Microsoft have jointly agreed to suspend work on a Halo feature film. A statement released by WingNut Films reads in part:

At this time Peter Jackson and Fran Walsh, along with their partner, Microsoft, have mutually agreed to postpone making a feature film based on the Halo video game universe until we can fulfill the promise we made to millions of Halo fans throughout the world that we would settle for no less than bringing a first class film to the big screen. We are fully supportive of Director Neill Blomkamp’s vision of the film. Neill is a tremendously gifted filmmaker and his preliminary work on Halo is truly awe-inspiring. While it will undoubtedly take a little longer for Halo to reach the big screen, we are confident that the final feature film will be well worth the wait.

WingNut and Microsoft had previously stated they would move ahead with pre-production on the film while seeking new financing and distribution partners. Jackson, Walsh, and Microsoft have a separate agreement to work on future installments of the Halo video game franchise, as well as to produce an original game title for Microsoft.

Geoff Duncan
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Geoff Duncan writes, programs, edits, plays music, and delights in making software misbehave. He's probably the only member…
Get a PlayStation 5 in time for Christmas with this Walmart deal
The PlayStation 5 Slim Digital Edition with DualSense controller.

Want to get the PlayStation 5 with a discount and in time for Christmas? It's possible with this offer from Walmart for the Sony PlayStation 5 Slim Digital Edition. From its original price of $450, it's down to $374 for savings of $76. If you place your order right now, you can pick it up today or tomorrow. You or a loved one will be playing on the video game console tomorrow. Time is of the essence though, so we highly recommend proceeding with your purchase immediately to get the plan in motion.

Why you should buy the Sony PlayStation 5 Slim Digital Edition
The Sony PlayStation 5 Slim Digital Edition is a refresh of the popular video game console. Released in November 2023, it's a slimmer version of the device that was originally released three years prior, while also adding extra storage -- bumping up to 1TB from 825GB. You'll be able to install more titles, which is particularly important in the PlayStation 5 Slim Digital Edition as it doesn't come with a disc drive. You can eventually buy the PS5 Digital Edition Disc Drive for an additional $80, but for those who want to avoid the clutter of physical discs, going purely digital would sound like a great idea.

Read more
The Alienware m16 R2 gaming laptop with RTX 4070 is $500 off
The Alienware m16 R2 on a table in front of a window.

The gaming laptop deals of the holiday season aren't over yet, as there are still some excellent offers, such as Dell's discount for the Alienware m16 R2 with the Nvidia RTX 4070. From its original price of $2,600, the machine is down to $2,100. It's still pretty expensive, but it's actually a steal at that price, and the $500 in savings is huge. You're going to have to be quick in completing your purchase though, as there's no information on how much time is remaining before this bargain expires.

Why you should buy the Alienware m16 R2 gaming laptop
We highlighted the Alienware m16 R2's great gaming performance in our review of the gaming laptop, and this configuration that's on sale comes with the mighty Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 graphics card. Combined with the Intel Core Ultra 9 185H processor and 64GB of RAM, which doubles the recommended specification from our guide on how much RAM do you need, the Alienware m16 R2 won't have trouble running the best PC games at their highest settings. It's going to be ready for the upcoming PC games of the next few years as well -- it will be a while before you need to start thinking about making any upgrades.

Read more
I’m a Steam Deck apologist. Here’s why I’ve been using the ROG Ally instead
Elden Ring running on the Asus ROG Ally X.

Since its launch, I'm a bit of a Steam Deck apologist. It doesn't need the advocacy, as the Steam Deck is easily the best handheld gaming PC you can buy, but even in the face of competition from the ROG Ally, Lenovo Legion Go, and MSI Claw, I still use my Steam Deck for gaming on the go. A couple of apps have been slowly changing that story, however.

I like playing on my Steam Deck OLED due to the convenience. SteamOS isn't perfect, no, but it allows me to pick up and play my games quickly, which I value more than the higher performance available on Windows handhelds. A couple of key tweaks to the Windows experience can unlock that pick-up-and-play experience, and ever since configuring the ROG Ally X properly, I've been gravitating toward it more and more for my handheld gaming.
A proper sleep

Read more