Halo showrunner explains why they ignored the games to make TV show

Sam Comrie
AN image of the Halo TV show on Paramount

Paramount’s Halo TV show is set to debut on March 24, 2022, but the hotly anticipated show has players concerned after showrunner Steven Kane admitted to discarding the games as an influence during the show’s creation.

The Halo TV show has had a languid journey to the small screen as it has spent multiple years in development hell. Iconic filmmaker Steven Spielberg had been attached to the show for years, helping spearhead its eventual launch with Steven Kane and Kyle Killen as showrunners.

Hopes are high for Master Chief’s live-action adventure but players are cautious after Kane claims they didn’t look to the games for inspiration.

halo tv series master chief
The Halo TV show has already been renewed for a second season.

Halo showrunner says they “didn’t look at the game” to create new TV show

The Halo franchise has a wealth of lore to pull from but in the case of the Halo TV show, showrunner Steven Kane has said in an interview with Variety that “we didn’t look at the game. We didn’t talk about the game.”

“We didn’t talk about the game. We talked about the characters and the world. So I never felt limited by it being a game,” continued Kane as he described the creative process.

While the show’s creative team hasn’t completely dismissed Master Chief’s gaming origins, the decision to distance themselves from the games is likely to carve out their own identity within the franchise’s expansive lore.

Speaking on the pre-production process, Kane said “the richness and the depth of the universe was immediately kind of mind-boggling and incredibly exciting because what it means as a storyteller is that there’s already been a huge amount of preparation and groundwork.”

Kiki Wolfkin of 343 Industries, who oversees the franchise’s transmedia projects, added that “we were thinking about doing something that could tie very closely with the game.” However, despite their intentions to make the sure more close-knit, it “wasn’t serving the creative teams and their need to express a story and build the world through their eyes.”

Halo arrives exclusively on Paramount+ on March 24, 2022. Hopefully, the wait will have paid off.

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About The Author

Sam Comrie is a former Dexerto journalist based in South Yorkshire, UK. He has an MA in Multimedia Journalism and joined Dexerto in 2021 after producing content for NME and Red Bull Gaming.