G.I. Joe Screenwriter Stuart Beattie Has Written Halo Spec Script
Note: This is a not an April Fool’s Day joke. ScreenwriterStuart Beattie, whose script is behind the $170 millionG.I. Joethat’s currently filming, has written a full spec-script for a potentialHalomovie according toLatino Review. Moreover, his script is based onEric Nylund’s first book tie-in, the prequelHalo: The Fall of Reach,and carries the same name.
For those not in the know, a “spec script” means a script that’s written without the screenwriter being paid or contracted to do so. Apparently Beattie (Spy Hunter,Pirates of the Caribbean 1) is a fan ofBungie’s ginormous video game franchise and wishes to get the first film off life support, where it’s been since last summer when producerPeter Jacksonand hotshot directorNeil Blomkampfonce again threw in the towel after an eruption of distribution differences.
Not only does Beattie’sHalo: The Fall of Reachdeliver a worthy action film according to LR’s inside source but it sets up a trilogy of films to coincide with the three Xbox installments. Here’s what the source said…
“The script is, first and foremost, a character-driven story about a soldier named John who was kidnapped or “conscripted” by the UNSC when he was just six years old, and then brutally trained to become an elite Spartan warrior known as Master Chief 117.
The script then takes us through the horrific first contact with the Covenant hordes on the doomed colony world of Harvest, and then climaxes with the spectacular fall of the UNSC forward base on Reach, during which every other Spartan is slaughtered.”
The source goes on to compare the script toJaws, in that the Covenant (the series' cunning alliance of aliens) isn’t seen until the half-way point, thereby making the first film financially attractive. In 2005, a script by Alex Garland (28 Days Later) that went through several rewrites was set to be used for Blomkampf’s film. Of note, Beattie also wrote theGears of Warvideo game adaptation that is now reportedly scheduled for 2010.
Discuss: WillHalo: The Movieever happen? Furthermore, will the infamously uptight dudes at Microsoft give Beattie’s script the time of day?
