The Portal movie is still happening, JJ Abrams insists

JJ Abrams' film adaptation of Portal is still in "active development" at Warner Bros, the director told IGN earlier today.

Word on a Portal and Half-Life movie first emerged back in 2013, as it turned out that Abrams had been talking to Valve boss Gabe Newell about a possible adaptation. Save a few small announcements, we've heard very little from either project since.

Speaking at a press event for the 4K release of Super 8 (a film that was given a playable teaser within Portal 2), Abrams told IGN that the Portal project is still on track—though don't expect it to see completion anytime soon.

"We actually do have a script that’s being written for the Portal movie now at [Warner Bros.]," said Abrams. "We’re really excited about the take and the pitch, so it feels like that thing’s finally on the rails."

Sadly, it doesn't sound like the Half-Life adaptation has been so fortunate. Abrams notes that his production company Bad Robot is "not actively involved" with that project at the moment.  It's also still very early days for the Portal movie—no directors or casting has been announced, and Abrams wasn't ready to disclose who wrote the script currently kicking around WB.

Adapting Portal's largely silent, first-person puzzling into a feature film also seems one hell of a challenge. But it's a challenge Abrams is excited by, with plenty of ways to push into parts of the Portal universe the games could only hint at.

"It’s got enormous potential for a lot of reasons, one of which is because of the limited narrative of the game, as ingeniously told as it is, the potential of it is so huge. It’s gonna be super fun."
JJ Abrams' film adaptation of Portal is still in "active development" at Warner Bros, the director told IGN earlier today.

Word on a Portal and Half-Life movie first emerged back in 2013, as it turned out that Abrams had been talking to Valve boss Gabe Newell about a possible adaptation. Save a few small announcements, we've heard very little from either project since.

Speaking at a press event for the 4K release of Super 8 (a film that was given a playable teaser within Portal 2), Abrams told IGN that the Portal project is still on track—though don't expect it to see completion anytime soon.

"We actually do have a script that’s being written for the Portal movie now at [Warner Bros.]," said Abrams. "We’re really excited about the take and the pitch, so it feels like that thing’s finally on the rails."

Sadly, it doesn't sound like the Half-Life adaptation has been so fortunate. Abrams notes that his production company Bad Robot is "not actively involved" with that project at the moment.  It's also still very early days for the Portal movie—no directors or casting has been announced, and Abrams wasn't ready to disclose who wrote the script currently kicking around WB.

Adapting Portal's largely silent, first-person puzzling into a feature film also seems one hell of a challenge. But it's a challenge Abrams is excited by, with plenty of ways to push into parts of the Portal universe the games could only hint at.