Halo fans rejoice: Master Chief will play one of the leads in Showtime's Halo TV series

Back during the original Xbox One unveil at E3 2013, Microsoft Studios' 343 Industries announced a collaboration with Steven Spielberg to adapt the Halo franchise into a live-action television series. Microsoft also promised 'exclusive interactive Xbox One content' but neither the TV series nor the Xbox One content saw the light of the day. Earlier this year, broadcast partner Showtime's President of Programming, Gary Levine, confirmed that the Halo TV series is all set to hit production this Fall, which brought much needed relief to Halo fans. Now, Levine has confirmed to IGN that Master Chief will be playing one of the lead characters in the series. 

Levine said that the Halo TV series is an 'enormous undertaking' and that it took a long time to get the script right for the series to appeal to both Showtime drama fans and Halo fans alike. Steven Spielberg is still onboard alongside the likes of Kyle Killen (Awake, Mind Games) who'll be the writer and showrunner and Rupert Wyatt (Rise of the Planet of the Apes) who'll helm multiple episodes in the 10-episode long Season 1. Production is yet to commence but Levine says that this will be Showtime's 'most ambitious series ever.' 

Halo fans can be rest assured that although the series will have a new story, the essence of the characters and the Halo universe will be untouched. Levine said,

It is a new story but we are being incredibly respectful of the canon and working with the Microsoft 343 people to be sure we don’t violate any of that."

Also, we might never get to see Master Chief's face behind the helmet as Levine admits,

...it [that aspect of Master Chief's character] is a key question and an important part of our series, is all I’ll say."

The series is expected to air sometime in 2020 and will feature locations on 'foreign planets'. Now where's Cortana when you need her?

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