Del Toro torn over Halo movie

Director confirms he's in talks to direct but said he'd prefer making Hellboy 2.

At a recent New York press event for Peter Jackson's film King Kong, rumors spread that Hellboy director Guillermo del Toro had been hired to direct the film adaptation of Halo. Days later, that theory appeared to have been shot down, courtesy of an online interview with Jackson, who is executive producer of Halo. He told the site Dark Horizons that no director had been signed and said none would be until 2006.

Yesterday, though, the Halo-helmer story took another turn. Speaking to the British film magazine Empire, del Toro confirmed that he has indeed been approached to direct Halo. "I'm in talks with them [distributors Universal Studios and 20th Century Fox] and Peter," he told the mag.

Perhaps more astonishing to fans is the fact that the Halo movie is only of secondary interest to del Toro. The filmmaker's top priority is a sequel to Hellboy, which has reportedly done well on video. "Halo is very much an interesting project, because it's so full of monsters," he said. "It's a big temptation...but it's not true that it's on and Hellboy's off. Hellboy's on. If everything goes as planned, Hellboy will go...It's still on the front burner, but it's all about the budget."

Given the time-sensitive nature and scale of Halo, which is being fast-tracked for an early 2006 production start and a summer 2007 release, it's unlikely that Universal, Fox, and Jackson would wait until del Toro finished Hellboy 2. "The ideal for me would be to do Hellboy 2 and if Halo doesn't go away, then yeah, I'd love to do both," he told Empire. "But it may go to somebody else. We'll see."

However, just because del Toro is prioritizing Hellboy 2 doesn't mean that he isn't a fan of Halo the game. "Most of the time games don't have a universe or creatures that interest me enough, and this one does," he said. "The Master Chief is such an iconic character...It's a very intense game, and I thought it was very cinematic. The game is structured in many ways like a movie. It could kick some ass."

73 Comments

  • shawny688

    Posted Oct 1, 2006 3:16 pm PT

    i say hellboy is a stupid movie halo story on the game was better then the hellboy movie that sucks do halo movie insted of hellboy.

  • jmaceman

    Posted Sep 27, 2006 4:58 pm PT

    ok i dont know who del whatever is but i do know who peter jackson is and who can say they didnt like lotr or king kong

    and cmon del toro what is he a bull rider or something who really cares about him

    i gotta say my man pete because peter jackson is a g

  • CastleFrank

    Posted Jul 13, 2006 1:23 pm PT

    **** I JUST HEARD THAT THE CAST MASTER CHIEF! THEY CHOSE DENZEL WASHINGTON........WHAT THE F$#@!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • gamefreakwill

    Posted Jun 24, 2006 7:44 pm PT

    PETER JACKSON MUST DIRECT!

    Jackson sohould know that del Toro would want to do Hellboy II: THe Golden Army more than Halo. Jackson would definately make Halo great. Just look at the Lord of the Rings Trilogy and King Kong, they were AWSOME.

    Plus, I here this movie is very high budget, but that won't totally get del Toro to direct.

  • HaloMasters

    Posted May 7, 2006 4:33 am PT

    halo the movie... It sounds geat and with all the money and effort spend in this film are also great... I definately want to see it on the big screen.

  • Chiyo18

    Posted Mar 4, 2006 5:56 pm PT

    Hellboy was a pretty good movie, but this is Halo we're talking about. If I had to choose between seeing Hellboy 2 or Halo, it would definitely be Halo. I'm positive this movie will kick ass, especially with Jackson AND Bungie involved in the development and production. If del Toro isn't sure what to do, then he should just say no, step aside, and let the crew find another director, instead of jerking them around saying 'oh, maybe I'll do it' 'no, I'd rather do Hellboy' 'blah blah blah'. If they want a summer 2007 release, then they should move on and look for someone else. I'm sure it'll be an awesome movie no matter who they get to direct it, although I agree that the director should play both games before hand. That way they know the style and what not.

  • QualityJeverage

    Posted Mar 2, 2006 2:33 pm PT

    If Del Toro isn't 100% about it, then he shouldn't do it. We need someone who is devoted to the project and WANTS to make it work.

    And to all you naysayers who insist that this movie will suck, shut up for now. I personally think it will be good, but that's my opinion. Stop making brash statements based on the VERY limited information at hand, and if it does suck, I'll be the first to admit it. Until then though, keep your mouth shut and have some hope, remember, things can change, just because past Game-to-Movie translations haven't been good, doesn't mean Halo has to follow suit.

  • QualityJeverage

    Posted Mar 2, 2006 2:32 pm PT

    If Del Toro isn't 100% about it, then he shouldn't do it. We need someone who is devoted to the project and WANTS to make it work.

    And to all you naysayers who insist that this movie will suck, shut up for now. I personally think it will be good, but that's my opinion. Stop making brash statements based on the VERY limited information at hand, and if it does suck, I'll be the first to admit it. Until then though, keep your mouth shut and have some hope, remember, things can change, just because past Game-to-Movie translations haven't been good, doesn't mean Halo has to follow suit.

  • B_Dole88

    Posted Jan 8, 2006 3:27 pm PT

    You mean the video game to movie conversion hasn't worked YET! Let's have Ridley direct the Halo movie, and if he can't do it, then lets just have Jackson b the director himself. Look at his last four movies! Spectacular works! If Halo can be as good as those, lets go for it!

  • coldfyre_99

    Posted Dec 17, 2005 9:51 am PT

    The movie will probably suck no matter who does it. Name one GOOD movie based off of a video game (not just one that did well at the box office), and making a game based on an FPS is the kiss of death.

  • loneraver1

    Posted Dec 13, 2005 10:32 am PT

    The reason why he would be a good director for this project is because, Like peter Jackson, he knows how to ballance SFX with drama. See his older films if you don't belive me. Oh man the Devil's Backbone is good stuff.

  • chrisdojo

    Posted Dec 13, 2005 9:56 am PT

    wow.... i'm glad the hellboyfool seems to be passing up the halo movie........ although, does the halo movie have a chance in the first place? (remember, game to movie and movie to game never works)

  • Smartiepants

    Posted Dec 12, 2005 12:18 pm PT

    If Jackson directs it, it'll be eight hours long. For some reason he is unable to make a punchy two-hour movie. I'd far rather see Spielberg do it. Lucas is a very talented guy but not the best at directing actors. Cameron, like Jackson, is great at action scenes but falls down on the 'quiet' bits. Spielberg is a good director (better than Jackson, certainly) as long as he doesn't start getting mushy...

  • BM2

    Posted Dec 12, 2005 12:10 pm PT

    I wonder what kind of story they will make out of Halo...
    RE that had some background was confusing, just getting a little better on the second.
    I can't see anything interesting coming from Halo....

  • NeoJedi

    Posted Dec 12, 2005 11:22 am PT

    del Toro would make a bad decision if he decided to do Hellboy 2 instead of Halo. I didn't find Hellboy to be that good, and doing a sequel to a movie that did pourly at the box office is bad karma. The sequel will end up on DVD one month after it's release in theaters. By the way, I still think Spielberg would be the best choice to direct this movie.

  • Owt_Ytrof

    Posted Dec 12, 2005 6:49 am PT

    It's partially amusing and partially sad to see how much venom is being spewed at Del Torro just because he's not the world's #1 Halo fan who'd kill his own mother just for a chance to direct what will probably be an average film at best. At least if Hellboy 2 turns out average, it will be something he wanted to do, instead of something he did because ti was possibly to be more popular.

    I'll be in line for HB2 tickets long before I purchase Halo tickets, myself.

    Oh, and to RexDart817: I'm not sure what version of Halo you played, but the one I played you pretty much spent the whole game blasting aliens that could pretty accurately be described as "monsters."

  • anynamethen

    Posted Dec 12, 2005 6:24 am PT

    I have friends who like Halo, and after reading about this, all they are doing is going on like "Oh my god, he'd choose Hellboy 2 over Halo".
    Not everyone is a halo fan, I personally dislike the game, and if I was in Del Toro's shoes, I'd pick hellboy 2 also. Del Toro is a fan of hellboy, so I think he'd be best sticking with what he likes, for the best results on that movie.

  • RexDart817

    Posted Dec 12, 2005 6:14 am PT

    I'd rather see Jackson do it cause he's a fan of the game. Del Toro sounds like he wants to make a monster movie, but doesn't care about the property.

  • 88revan

    Posted Dec 12, 2005 5:59 am PT

    dude this suxx..no halo director chosem yet and tehy have to get the film out in 2007? 2005's nearly at an end..choose 1 and do it fast.

    P.S_ how abt bill gates direxting the movie

  • Kwiksilva

    Posted Dec 12, 2005 5:52 am PT

    Hellboy was an under-rated movie in my opinion and hopefully Del Torro will have time to do Hellboy 2 and the Halo movie.

  • Buck_Hotep

    Posted Dec 12, 2005 5:46 am PT

    If King Kong does as well as every industry insider thinks it will then Peter Jackson will have even more power in the industry and I can see Ridley Scott agreeing to do the job of directing if he was offered the right money. Though I wouldn't mind Jackson taking a pick from some of the younger directors in the horror/scifi genre that's come up in the ranks like Aja and Gans.

  • hatchetman696

    Posted Dec 12, 2005 5:37 am PT

    Jackson should pick himself. This is how, first off he is wearing a master cheif helment.
    "You know honey..."
    "Yes, my little hobbit,"
    "Please can I direct Halo?"
    "No, I am not seeing you do another movie like this, we have too much money and expect more next week!"
    "Then I am not shaving my feet for a week!"
    "Go ahead! I would let you produce it either."

    I think Mr. Jackson is a god in this business, I wish his wife or whoever would let him take complete control because he cares so much about making his movies. I have seen the Lord of the Rings, and love it. I am going to see Kong too because he did it and I love the original. I would be happy with whoever he picks. Hopefully its himself.

  • vroenis

    Posted Dec 11, 2005 11:47 pm PT

    everyone's comments are quite interesting.

    there is one thing i think that will govern the entire process and all decisions made regarding the production of this film, no matter how much control Microsoft and Bungie want of it. from a monetary perspective, this film must appeal to more cinemagoers than just those who are fans of the game. it's this balance between honouring fans and attracting wider audiences that often tarnishes many franchise films, be they based on games, books, or even established film series'.

    several problems are encountered when attempting to design films that appeal to non-fans, one of the first of which is extraneous explanation of the premise and characters. given the average 90 minute film, if twenty to thirty of those minutes are dedicated to introduction per se, many fans might already find this uninteresting. use those thirty minutes to honour fans, and anyone experiencing the franchise for the first time will be lost on the narrative.

    one basic fact to remember is that if the Halo film was made to be 'our' film, sure enough, we might all go and see it two, three times each, but this is not nearly enough to gross profitably. this film must engage as many first-time viewers as possible, and often it is at the sacrifice of the fans...

    because whether or not the film ends up being bad or not, every single one of us the fans are going to go and see it. we might not see it again, but we would have paid our price for admission on opening weekend, and as many in the industry have said before, that's often what makes or breaks a film. income from our ticket sales is guarenteed no matter what, it's the first-time viewers that need to be attracted.

    hate to paint a slightly pesimistic picture - i sincerely hope it turns out well, but i won't be angered or surprised if the final product ends up being totally departed from what we as fans expect.

  • dirtymotoxer21

    Posted Dec 11, 2005 10:15 pm PT

    y is everyone hating on del toro? i would probably bet that the people on here that don't like del toro probably didn't like war of the worlds which is one of the best movies this year next to batman begins. hellboy is an awesome movie, its one of the best comic book movies ever made, along with blade 2, which is the best in the blade series. del toro has an eye for visual effects and his dialoge is great in his movies and there never seems to be a boring moment in his films. now as far as a halo director? i don't really see him doing it, he doesn't have that epic kind of film making to him, hes more personal when it comes to his stories. james cameron would be nice if only he did movies he didn't right and had total control, good luck with him getting on this lol ridley scott is the best choice i believe, the first time i heard about the halo movie i heard he was already in talks to direct it but i don't know where that went. ridley has that epic kind of film making that halo needs, something like gladiator or kingdom of heaven. peter jackson would be great too but i have no idea what hes doing after king kong, which is looking like its goign to be the best action adventure movie of the year.

  • FeldmanSkitzoid

    Posted Dec 11, 2005 5:37 pm PT

    I'm glad to see that he's sticking with the Hellboy sequel. But mainly for personal reasons - though the first HB movie was merely decent, I still think he's got the right idea, and would fix a lot of the mistakes made in the first one.

    Also, I'm a big HB fan, and I really couldn't care less about Halo. I hope the movie version is good, and if it is I'll go see it, but if it's not I'll just shrug my shoulders and go on with my life.

    HB2 needs Del Toro's passion to succeed. Without him, it would be given to some hack music-video director, the movie would really suck, and that would be the end of future HB projects.

    But Halo movies...you know they're going to make at least 3 of them, even if they all suck. Just look at Resident Evil - the movies are horrible, but somehow they just keep making money.

  • richmond5

    Posted Dec 11, 2005 3:31 pm PT

    As long as Peter Jackson lets those Kiwis from WETA do the job for the monster makeup and props, they will kick ass. They did LOTR and Narnia, prop to them. Andy Circus should do motion capture for the main Convenant bad guys as well.

    Lucas for director, pfft!!! He was wrong to chose and direct Hayden Christiansen..retard. The best director should be Peter Jackson, he is so good, he makes non fighting scenes entertaining and adaptations so epic.

    UWE BOLL must stay away from directing, PERIOD. I can direct better than him. Blood Rayne looks like low budget crap!

  • Texas69

    Posted Dec 11, 2005 1:58 pm PT

    At this rate, there won't be a Halo movie if this pace is kept up. By the time they make it Halo 4 would have come out and the war between Earth the flood and the Covenant would be over. ; ^ (

  • UltimatumCHIEF

    Posted Dec 11, 2005 1:35 pm PT

    WARNING: Del Toro back off Halo movie is too BIG for you, go and make you crap Hellboy 2 movie. And George Lucas is retied after StarWars 3 movie END OF STORY.

  • HottLatinoBoi

    Posted Dec 11, 2005 11:10 am PT

    ZakuKai >>> DUDE,

    I worked in the movie industry for years. The only reason why a game to movie would do bad is becuase the people taking on the challenge were not good directors anyway. Look at street Fighter. God that was bad, but then you look at Tomb Raider or Mortal Kombat, they did great in the box office. Final Fantasy... Nope, great CGI, but the movie was garbage. Resident Evil. Look that a Sci -Fi channel type of movie.. I did not see Doom, but I did not hear anything good about it. Helo in the other hand could be made. The story is already there. You just need really good writers and a great director.. Like I said above. George Lucas would make this movie great. It wold take a while for him to do it, but if the would take the effects of Star Wars with all the actiong packed stuff and all that CGI goodness. Halo would be up on top... Del Toro sounds to busy and does not seem intrested. I would not trust him with a movie like Halo. He can go make his Hellboy 2 movie. I don't see what the fuss is all about, cause the movie did bad in the box office.

  • HottLatinoBoi

    Posted Dec 11, 2005 11:01 am PT

    Who cares about del Toro... He can go make his corny Hellboy 2. I hated that movie anyway. I wish that George Lucas would take on the challenge of makeing Halo. Imagine. Lucas (Director) and Peter Jackson (Producer).. Del Toro and go and make a movie thats not going to make any money. The movie Hellboy does not need a part 2. It was what it is. Just a part one movie. Helo in that other hand would make way for many other parts. He is not a smart man..

  • ZakuKai

    Posted Dec 11, 2005 10:52 am PT

    Well, this movie could either make halo even bigger than it is now, or it could really do some damage. I am leaning towards this movie as being bad, just look at all the previous game based movies. as for a director Peter Jackson or James Camron would be best because Halo the movie would need to be an epic film first in order to bring in the entirety of the Halo universe, if its just an action film i don't see it doing well. I am not a halo fan, i play it once a month, maybe, on a buddies x-box; so the movie would have to be good and have depth to it in order for me, and many people like me to go and see it.

  • BlazeHedgehog

    Posted Dec 11, 2005 6:47 am PT

    I'm totally not okay with Del Torro touching Halo. He's good for all-style, little-substance action flicks like Blade 2 and Hellboy, but I'm not sure he could handle Halo in that reguard.

  • garhart

    Posted Dec 11, 2005 6:44 am PT

    Better take time to write the script. So many bad adaptations of great stories and games into movies lately.

    Do it right from the start! Take time to get it right, get a big budget, and good actors. We need less "Hulks" and more Spider-man or Resident Evils.

  • nicc2004

    Posted Dec 10, 2005 11:28 pm PT

    peter jackson=lord
    del who?

  • EnhancedVGA

    Posted Dec 10, 2005 9:56 pm PT

    Posted by: davu_leon
    "They're going about this all the wrong way. They need somebody like Paul Greengrass, or whatever his name is. That fella what done the Bourne Supremacy. Not a cartoon style director. Garland as scriptwriter was a good start, now let's see em continue along that line. "

    Words of wisdom.....

    But seriously, Del Toro would be a bad choice. Spielberg? Lucas? they better not get withing 100 miles of the script. They would ruin it faster than you can say "DO-OVER" And Uwe Boll? I think we've suffered anough because of him for one lifetime. And after seeing some footage of Kong, hey, maybe Peter Jackson should direct the movie. But whatever happens, this better not turn into a "horror" movie, which I was afraid Alex Garlend might get carried away with. First of all, the flood aretn scary. Second, being scared is not why I like Halo(2). Third, I want to see explosions and the chief doing some hand to hand combat, not night of the living dead.

  • GameDestroyer88

    Posted Dec 10, 2005 8:32 pm PT

    NO NO NO NO VIN DIESEL FOR MASTER CHIEF..... ...sorry egocinski they should just have Steve Downes (the actual voice of Master Chief from the game) voice him for the movie....Just like George Lucas did with Darth Vader and James Earl Jones

  • GameDestroyer88

    Posted Dec 10, 2005 8:28 pm PT

    Mixed reactions.......ehhh Hellboy was allright....but I wouldn't nominate it for movie of the year. I just hope that Jackson can find someone who can put this movie to greatness......Steve Spielberg?? James Cameron??

  • egocinski

    Posted Dec 10, 2005 6:27 pm PT

    Halo is the best game EVER! And the movie will be off the charts, they should have Vin Diesel be Master Chief, cause he would be awesome, just like awesome he is in XXX!

  • mumotuma_man

    Posted Dec 10, 2005 12:44 pm PT

    I'm just hoping the story to the Halo movie is the same as the book "Halo: The fall of reach".... because that actually had a plot and while not actually based on either of the games, its still Halo. And Peter Jackson should direct it and take as much time as it takes...because we all know its gonna be R and I dont turn 17 for 3 yeers...and i wanna see it in theatres

  • Centius

    Posted Dec 10, 2005 12:35 pm PT

    I would much rather have another director than Del Toro do the Halo movie. Hellboy was a mediocre movie overall, fun to watch but nothing special. To pull off a game to movie film such as Halo it will take a much more talented director. Jackson directing it himself would be the best choice but that doesn't look like it will happen here. As some people were saying earlier Ridley Scott or Bryan Singer would both be able to do justice to this movie.

    Yes, basically every game to movie transition has completely sucked so far, but if they are able to get a talented enough group to work on Halo it can definitely turn out to be an amazing movie. The main reason for the other game based movies turning out badly was simply because of who was working on them for the most part. There hasn't really been one made that you could really expect to turn out to be amazing just for the reason that the people working on it can't put out an amazing movie in general.

  • J-X

    Posted Dec 10, 2005 12:04 pm PT

    As long as the director does the story justice, that is all that matters.

  • Primenova

    Posted Dec 10, 2005 9:32 am PT

    Spielberg couldn't do this movie. He's too busy producing the live-action Transformers movie due at the same time, and prepping the next Indian Jones film.

  • The_SandRock

    Posted Dec 10, 2005 8:27 am PT

    Let's have Nora Ephron direct, and turn it into a romantic comedy. I can see it now! A hot sex scene with MC and an Elite!

  • Kempatsu_basic

    Posted Dec 10, 2005 5:26 am PT

    hellboy sucked. that movie blew. and del toro is a fat bastard. i hope they find a better diretor then him

  • davu_leon

    Posted Dec 10, 2005 5:21 am PT

    They're going about this all the wrong way. They need somebody like Paul Greengrass, or whatever his name is. That fella what done the Bourne Supremacy. Not a cartoon style director. Garland as scriptwriter was a good start, now let's see em continue along that line.

  • FrozenBabylon

    Posted Dec 10, 2005 2:54 am PT

    If the scrapped the movie entirely I wouldn't care. The games had an ok story for a First person shooter. But it was still a first person shooter that wasn't Half-life.

    So yeah. Video game movies are generally balls. This one won't be any different, Even with Peter Jackson being the exec.

    So yeah. Let Boll direct it and see how badly he can ruin a already lackluster story.

  • Atomic_Mutant

    Posted Dec 10, 2005 12:15 am PT

    I think Uwe Boll should direct the movie. Very efficient filmmaking.

    Del Toro can conjure up some very interesting cinematic flair. It is difficult for Halo as a content can be bestowed a transition to movies that will interest any of the top tier directors who have their own little projects brewing; directing a videogame based movie is still considered to be a detour that, while not being a career suicide, may hamper the sheen in their overall career achievements (what, was he THAT despearate for money?). I think that is a wrong perception, but still the people who are at least capable directors while being the fan of the game enough to understand its cinematic roots, like Del Toro, could be ideal.

    And those who think Hellboy is stupid should be shot, I am afraid to say. j/k

  • supermechakirby

    Posted Dec 9, 2005 11:45 pm PT

    Hellboy was a good movie

    but game movies NEVER have done well

    think movie games

  • ShadowGryphon

    Posted Dec 9, 2005 11:05 pm PT

    PLEEEEEEEEEEEEASE do not pick Uwe Boll.
    I'd rather have Chevy Chase directing Halo than Uwe Boll

  • LiveByMeDieByMe

    Posted Dec 9, 2005 10:23 pm PT

    Cervantes... I got Halo 2 for the story (as well as the gameplay, because story alone isnt usually a good enough reason to buy a game if its a pain in the butt to play) And to the person who suggested George Lucas should direct Halo... How can you say that after how badly he ruined the star wars prequels (I mean that was something he wrote and he ruined it, imagine what atrocities he could commit on something written by somebody else)

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