There are only two video games that have taken up several hours of my life in the last thirteen years – Friday the 13th: The Game and Halo. The original Halo: Combat Evolved. I have never ventured into the sequels, but I have played an insane number of Halo: Combat Evolved multiplayer games over the years and still drop into its servers from time to time. So while I'm far from being a Halo expert or pro, I do have some interest in checking out the upcoming Showtime series based on the franchise.
My interest level has just gotten a boost by the casting of Pablo Schreiber in the lead of Master Chief,
Earth's most advanced warrior in the 26th century and the only hope of salvation for a civilization pushed to the brink of destruction by the Covenant, an unstoppable alliance of alien worlds committed to the destruction of humanity.
Schreiber is joined in the cast by newcomer Yerin Ha, who will be playing a new character named Quan Ah, "a shrewd, audacious 16-year-old from the Outer Colonies who meets Master Chief at a fateful time for them both."
A half-brother to Liev Schreiber, Pablo Schreiber made his screen acting debut in 2001 (the same year Halo: Combat Evolved was released) in the film BUBBLE BOY. He has been working steadily ever since, and appeared in four movies just last year: DEN OF THIEVES, BEAST OF BURDEN, SKYSCRAPER, and FIRST MAN. He won me over as a fan with his performance as the guard called "Pornstache" on Orange Is the New Black, and has recently been seen playing Mad Sweeney on American Gods (pictured above).
The folks behind the Halo series are aiming to "weave deeply drawn personal stories with action, adventure, and a richly imagined vision of the future." The series is being executive produced by showrunners Kyle Killen and Steven Kane, along with Darryl Frank and Justin Falvey of Amblin Television, in partnership with 343 Industries, director Otto Bathurst and Toby Leslie for One Big Picture, Scott Pennington for Chapter Eleven, and Karen Richards. CBS Studios International will be handling global distribution.