Halo has been one of the most successful video game franchises of all time and Xbox's killer app. Since the original game, Halo: Combat Evolved, the series has been popular, especially its multiplayer modes. While the Halo series may have dipped in the eyes of critics with its last release, Halo 5: Guardians, it's still considered to be Xbox's flagship franchise. Over the years, there have several attempts to get a live-action Halo project off the ground, and now it's finally taking shape with Paramount's Halo TV series.

Halo Infinite is due to launch this holiday season. After an unpopular reveal in 2020, 343 Industries decided to delay the game to focus on its quality. Halo Infinite was given a fresh look at E3 2021, which proved to resonate with fans better. It's widely considered to be more visually impressive, and the team has been praised for its approach to the multiplayer mode. The Halo series could be looking at a fresh injection of admiration with the new game and TV show. While fans are delighted to see the TV series get off the ground, the road to Paramount's TV show hasn't always been easy.

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In the immediate years following the success of Halo: Combat Evolved, Microsoft sought to adapt Halo as a big-budget movie. Microsoft first met with Columbia Pictures and brought Alex Garland on board, the famed writer of 28 Days Later, Dredd, and Enslaved: Odyssey to the West. Unfortunately, most studios considered Microsoft to be seeking too much control without an appropriate level of financial investment, which would be one reason why the Halo movie never got off the ground. A host of talent was attracted to the project, including Guillermo del Toro, Peter Jackson, and Neill Blomkamp.

Numerous factors contributed to the Halo movie's collapse. Microsoft was reportedly adamant that the adaptation stuck close to the source material, which was a position shared by Neil Blomkamp. At this point, Fox and Universal were the major studios linked with the project. Fox was unhappy with the overall direction of the picture, and Universal was happy to let work on it continue, but not without major pay cuts. This effectively left the Halo movie project dead in the water. With the Halo TV series officially underway, it can be easy to forget the troubled road traveled to get Halo adapted for a major live-action project.

The Halo TV show is well underway, but the production hasn't been without its own troubles. Originally due to air on Showtime, the Halo series moved to Paramount+ for an early 2022 release. Not only this, the show is due to lose both of its showrunners after the first season. As with a lot of other team-based creative projects, COVID-19 has also impacted its production schedule. While this production has had its fair share of issues, the series is on track to be finished, unlike the failed movie project years ago. Fans are excited to see how the TV series will turn out, and it could be vindicating for those who were excited about the movie adaptation in the 2000s.

Halo has stopped and started filming a few times due to the COVID-19 pandemic and other production-related issues. Fans are hoping that the series will be able to meet its current early 2022 release date. As challenging as the production for the Halo TV show has seemed to be, it doesn't appear to be quite as significant as the issues the movie adaptation faced. There are at least 6 months to go before it's released, and in the meantime, Halo Infinite should be released before the end of 2021. The show and new game have faced issues during their production, but it's an exciting time to be a Halo fan.

The Halo TV series is set to premiere on Paramount+ in early 2022.

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