2022 is shaping up to be a pretty big year for blockbuster video game adaptations, with the Uncharted hitting the big screen and The Last of Us and Halo TV series launching on streaming platforms. The latter of which has been in the works in some form or another for nearly a decade. The series is finally within arm’s reach. The Halo TV show will debut on Paramount+ on March 24. In addition, we got a pretty sweet look at Halo during the AFC Championship game.
Stunning imagery, an imminent alien war, and an ethereal Phil Collins cover? This trailer certainly means business.
Like the games it’s based on, the series follows the 26th-century war between humans and a group of aliens called the Covenant. It stars Pablo Schreiber as the Master Chief, Spartan-117; Natascha McElhone as Dr. Halsey, creator of the Spartan super-soldiers; and Jen Taylor as Cortana, reprising her role from the games. Cortana is a supremely advanced AI, that may prove vital to humans’ survival.
But as the trailer suggests, war with the Covenant isn’t the only budding war. Dr. Halsey has the power to control the Spartan soldiers, but what happens when she can’t? After touching the mysterious object the aliens are mining from Earth, something shifts in the soldier. And she can no longer control him. Which may just make him a risk to her program’s future.
In addition to the main trio, the Halo TV Show boasts a large ensemble cast. It includes Bokeem Woodbine, Shabana Azmi, Natasha Culzac, Olive Gray, Yerin Ha, Bentley Kalu, Kate Kennedy, Charlie Murphy, Danny Sapani. Presumably, they’ll all play characters first introduced in the games. Ryan McParland, Burn Gorman, and Fiona O’Shaughnessy will play original characters.
While the trailer debuted during primetime football coverage, Paramount+ also released a bunch of images that give us a better sense of the futuristic world and its perils.
While we haven’t seen too much footage of the show previously, Paramount+ dropped two short teasers in late 2021. Both gave us a glimpse of Earth’s future, featuring sweeping shots of the looming space-based threat, Master Chief suiting up, and our expansive cast of characters. Suffice to say, they looked pretty promising.
The first season of the Halo TV show drops on March 24.