First Halo TV series trailer brings Master Chief to life

First announced by Steven Spielberg way back at E3 2013, the Halo TV series is finally here — and there’s a trailer to prove it. But don’t expect much; Microsoft and Paramount offered only a brief, 27-second teaser of live-action Master Chief on Monday.

Originally set to air on Showtime, the Paramount Plus exclusive hails from Halo developer 343 Industries and Spielberg’s Amblin Television. A trailer for the series shows off the series’ effects-driven spectacle and plenty of recognizable iconography, including Master Chief, as portrayed by Pablo Schreiber of Orange Is the New Black.

Along with Schrieber, Jen Taylor will assume her role from the games as the advanced artificial intelligence Cortana, who often serves as an advisor to series protagonist Master Chief. Bokeem Woodbine (Fargo, Spider-Man: Homecoming) will play Soren-066, described as a “morally complex privateer at the fringes of human civilization whose fate will bring him into conflict with his former military masters and his old friend, the Master Chief.” Soren-066 appeared briefly in Halo canon in the short story “Pariah” from the Halo: Evolutions collection.

The Halo TV series will also introduce three original Spartans, played by actors Bentley Kalu (Avengers: Age of Ultron), Natasha Culzac (The Witcher), and Kate Kennedy (Catastrophe). From the original Showtime announcement:

The series will also introduce three all-new characters to the Halo universe. British actor Kalu will play Spartan Vannak-134, a cybernetically augmented supersoldier conscripted at childhood who serves as the defacto deputy to the Master Chief. British actress Culzac will star in the role of Spartan Riz-028 – a focused, professional and deadly, cybernetically enhanced killing machine. Kennedy stars as Spartan Kai-125, an all-new courageous, curious and deadly Spartan supersoldier. Yerin Ha was previously announced playing the new character Kwan Ha, a shrewd, audacious 16-year-old from the Outer Colonies who meets Master Chief at a fateful time for them both.

Halo is executive-produced by Kyle Killen (Awake, Lone Star) and Steven Kane (The Last Ship, The Closer), who also serve as co-showrunners. Otto Bathurst (Black Mirror, Robin Hood) directed the pilot and multiple episodes of the nine-episode series.