Video game adaptation Halo is finally coming to UK screens, with the sci-fi TV series (which aired in the United States some weeks ago) set to arrive for the UK launch of new streaming service Paramount Plus on 22nd June.
“I’m very apologetic that it’s taken us so long to get there,” series star Pablo Schreiber, who plays Master Chief, says now.
“I know people have been chomping at the bit to have it, and I know it sucks to have, you know, some consumers have access to it before you. But the wait is over, and we’re coming.”
And, in fact, they’re already going again. Unlike many a streaming show in the current climate, Halo has already secured a second season renewal, with Schreiber and the crew strapping back in for more episodes in the coming weeks and months. In other words, while UK fans have had a while to wait for season 1, season 2 is almost on its way already.
“We’re heading back soon. We’ll be back [filming] in Budapest in a month-and-a-half or so,” Schreiber told RadioTimes.com.
“Yeah, we start shooting in August.”
While Schreiber wouldn’t be drawn on what might happen, he did note that the series was set to get “bigger and bigger” in season 2, and hinted that “new and exciting” storylines were on the way.
“Hopefully, you know, you’ll continue to see the world expand to greater and greater places as the world gets bigger and bigger,” he said.
“I’ve seen a couple of scripts, but I guess I’m just hoping that the season that we’ve planted for the characters that you’ve seen in season 1 will just continue to flourish, and we’ll get deeper and darker into all of that,” Schreiber’s co-star Natascha McElhone, who plays scientist Dr Halsey told us.
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And apparently some behind-the-scenes changes will be a part of all that expansion. Season 1 showrunner David Kane will not return for season 2 (his would-be co-showrunner Kyle Kline had already departed earlier in development), with Brave New World and Fear the Walking Dead’s Dave Wiener now set to take control for season 2.
“The most important thing for me – I don’t want to be too specific about where I’d like the character to go – but the most important thing for me is the writing, you know, and the material,” Schreiber told us.
“To that end, we have a really, really fantastic new showrunner who’s come on board, who is taking the written material to really new and exciting places. That’s really all I can ask for, that we’re starting from a place of high-quality written material, and I’m so excited about that – to get back, and work on the season in a new aspect, and with new collaborators.”
“I’m sure there’ll be a lot of new elements and new characters thrown in as well,” added McElhone. “And we have a new showrunner this year, and there’ll be a new writers room, so that will be different voices.
“I’m excited. It’s like Christmas. You get sent scripts like little parcels that you open, and see all the treasures in there. And then it’s up to me to sort of pull it apart, and analyse, and try to make sense of it, and learn it, and embody it, I suppose.”
Sadly, further details weren’t forthcoming, with series executive producer (and game developer) Kiki Wolfkill noting that some things were still in flux.
“We’re still sort of fleshing out all of the creative on season 2,” Wolfkill told RadioTimes.com. “I think, you know, we learned a lot from season 1, I will say, from a production perspective, creatively – all of it.
“I think our focus right now is: how do we take those learnings forward? How do we take what worked great for us in season 1, based on our own experience? That’s one of the nice things about having the show out: it’s that we are getting feedback all of the time, which helps us really understand what resonates, and what has resonated, and what hasn’t, and how do we take those things forward?”
She added: “I think it’s interesting that the Halo universe can be both very vast and very intimate at the same time. I think that’s something we’ve been able to do in the games. We’ve always been able to create this huge scale but tell these very human, intimate stories.
“And I think that’s something that we’re going to sort of continue to double down on with season two, and, you know, bring all of the learnings from season one with us into that.”
Halo will stream on Paramount Plus in the UK from 22nd June. For more news and features, check out our dedicated Sci-Fi page or find something to watch now with our full TV Guide.
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