The original Halo composers Marty O’Donnell and Mike Salvatori are suing Microsoft and are looking to block the upcoming release of Paramount’s Halo TV series.
“This Paramount thing just showed up on TV, and Mike and I felt pretty disrespected. Having a connection to ancillary revenue from exploiting the original Halo music is exactly what this contract is all about,” O’Donnell said in an interview.
“Since we filed two years ago, they’ve continued to ignore the terms. Now, they’re about to broadcast the Halo TV show and are using our monk chant (calling it the theme to Halo) to also advertise and solicit subscriptions for Paramount+.”
A date for mediation is scheduled for next week, but if nothing comes out of it, the lawsuit originally filed in the state of Washington may go to court. If the Paramount series aspect of the lawsuit is successful, the March 24 release of the Halo TV series on Paramount+ could be delayed until an agreement between the composers and Microsoft could be met.
The original halo composers claim Microsoft owes them money in royalties dating back 20 years. The lawsuit was filed after a decade after failing to make progress on their disputes against the company. Microsoft argues that the original music was work-for-hire, but O’Donnell and Salvatori dispute that their work on Halo was a licensing deal.
“With the first Halo music ever, that was written and recorded in 1999 for the first time. It was licensed to Bungie. Bungie didn’t get bought by Microsoft for over a year,” O’Donnell said in an interview.
