It's been forever and a day since we've heard about any real momentum behind the proposed 'Halo' TV series under Stephen Spielberg, which originally had been set as the first of Microsoft Xbox's original content, and now we may know why. A new report suggests the 'Halo' TV series might land on Showtime instead, as part of a unique deal that has taken time to put together.

The recent announcements of Xbox's development slate for original scripted content gave little in the way of update on the 'Halo' series, but Variety reports that Showtime is nearing a deal with Microsoft that would see episodes of the series airing on the premium cable network first, before moving to Xbox. Microsoft is said to be close to a deal with a pair of showrunners for the series, under an expansive bible developed by screenwriter Stuart Beattie, but the deal is not envisioned as a straight-to-series pickup.

Here's what Variety had to say of the reasoning behind the apparent delay:

The deal with Showtime has taken a long time to work out because the sides are charting new territory for a show designed to air on Showtime as well as Xbox, with enhanced interactivity built in for the latter platform. Details are still being hammered out, but sources say the plan is to have episodes bow on Showtime first, followed by the Xbox window.

A minor update to be certain, but what do you think? Would the long-awaited 'Halo' TV series under Spielberg's Amblin TV move any faster with Showtime at the reigns? How would you like to see either network handle production on such a daunting series?

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