http://kotaku.com/5657490/report-halo-movie-might-happen-with-spielberg-but-in-an-unexpected-way
there's the linky.
Lot's of possibilities with this, but here's my thoughts:
Back when they were first pushing forward with the Halo movie I was deeply absorbed in the whole process (from a fan's perspective mind you) checking every update in print, online, and television. So while I don't pretend to have "insider" information, I do remember more or less how the whole thing went down, and what it all boiled down to is this:
Microsoft for reasons both good and bad where ultimately the ones who kept the movie from happening.
The GOOD reasons were that Microsoft wanted an unprecedented level of creative control over the entire project in order to make sure that hollywood didn't mess with the lore or the canon too much. They wanted approval on script changes, concepts, designs, and probably even costumes and sets, and they had a very thick bible clearly outlining all the factions, characters, and lore that Hollywood could not deviate from.
You know all the Transformer's fans who rage against Michael Bay for what he did to the lore? We would not have felt their pain. A good film or otherwise, it would NOT have been "Halo in name only".
The BAD reasons were that Microsoft ALSO wanted a huge amount of the profits from the film, and when the numbers started coming in on what the budget was going to be to make this thing happen, the studios came back to microsoft to renegotiate and they wouldn't have it. It's a little more complicated than that probably, and Microsoft was not the only greedy party in the whole process, but they were the major one.
Basically, Microsoft wanted ALL the potential benefits and rewards the movie offered with virtually NONE of the financial risks involved in a project like this. It didn't make any financial sense for the studios involved...so they pulled out, though they still retain the option for the films development.
So that brings us to NOW, with dreamworks possibly planning to produce a franchise based on the books rather than the game license. Will this be any different?
Surprisingly...yes, I think it will, and I have 1 very simple reason why: 343 industries. For better or worse, microsoft seems willing to take a few more risks with there license this time and they've already been testing the waters with Halo: Legends. So it's almost inevitable that if the Halo movie does happen, it will happen in conjunction with 343 industries, and they'd presumably have a hand in it financially and creatively.