Halo 3 in stores now…but how about the theaters?

The future looks great for the video game (in a couple of hours Halo 3 is expected to be one of the top selling titles of all time – shelving units shall be empty!) but what about the stalled video game to feature film adaptation?

The last reports (from the producers themselves) were that Halo was officially stalled – but the big sales numbers that will most likely be tallied up for the week to come will be a strong validating factor on the drumming up interest again for the film project. Picking up where Universal Pictures and 20th Century Fox left off, the producers (LOTR & King Kong clan) and Microsoft should expect offers from Warner Bros and Paramount, but I wouldn't be surprised to see Universal and Fox re-enter the portrait.

The price tag is awfully steep, Universal/Fox deal gave the movie a $128 million budget – but why the need to spend that much on a film? If we sample the opening weekend box office results for Resident Evil: Extinction (this is now the third film in the series) – that film was number one and probably cost half the price of a 120+ million budget.

Rookie director Neill Blomkamp might still get his shot, but with the strike and all the prepping involved, we expect to see at least 2 more game editions before the first film.

Here are storyline and sales facts: the games' plot concerns a warrior soldier known only as “Master Chief” battling a group of alien religious zealots who believe one of their most sacred artifacts is located on Earth. The “Halo” franchise is one of the most popular in video game history, having sold over 12.8 million units and grossed approximately $600 million since its 2001 debut. “Halo 2” sold 6.4 million copies and was the second-bestselling game of the year.