Showtime’s upcoming Halo adaptation has at long last found its Master Chief. According to Deadline, Pablo Schreiber has been cast as the super soldier in the new series based on the best-selling Xbox games.
Schreiber can currently be seen on Starz’s American Gods as the bellicose leprechaun Mad Sweeney. He also had a recurring role on Netflix’s Orange is the New Black as sadistic corrections officer George “Pornstache” Mendez. That role earned him an Emmy nomination in 2015 for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series. Additionally, Schreiber has appeared on HBO’s The Wire, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, and Weeds.
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Master Chief made his debut in Halo: Combat Evolved and quickly became one of the video game industry’s most iconic protagonists. Master Chief’s name is John-117, and he is one of the survivors of the SPARTAN-II program. That initiative created cybernetically enhanced infantrymen for the United Nations Space Command (UNSC). The games have famously neglected to show the character’s face across five installments and auxiliary spinoffs. Standing at 6’5”, Schreiber is certainly tall enough to fill Master Chief’s heavyweight Spartan armor. However, fans of the series are no doubt curious if he can match the distinctive baritone of voice actor Steve Downes, who has been bringing the Chief to life since 2001.
Deadline also revealed that actress Yerin Ha has joined Halo as Quan Ah, a character created for the show. The story calls her “a shrewd, audacious 16-year-old from the Outer Colonies who meets Master Chief at a fateful time.”
What are your thoughts on Pablo Schreiber playing Master Chief on Showtime’s Halo series? Do you have any additional theories about Yerin Ha’s character? Give us your impressions in the comment section below!
