Master Chief explains Halo season 1’s errors, why season 2 is better

Paramount Plus’ Halo sequence didn’t get off to an amazing begin. The first season, which premiered in 2022, appeared torn between attempting to match the motion of the video games and telling a really completely different story about Master Chief — which included a really misbegotten romance arc and one of many weirdest intercourse scenes of the 12 months.

But with season 2 of Halo beginning on Feb. 8, and set to tackle the autumn of Reach, Polygon sat down with Master Chief himself, Pablo Schreiber, to speak about what’s modified. And it turns it’s fairly a bit. Thanks partially to the sequence’ new showrunner, David Wiener, Schreiber appears to suppose Halo’s finest days are forward. Here’s the whole lot Schreiber needed to say about eliminating romance, making better motion, and maintaining Master Chief’s helmet on in Halo season 2.

This interview has been condensed and edited for readability.

Polygon: How do you describe Master Chief’s emotional journey on this season?

Pablo Schreiber: I feel his journey generally, within the second season, is way more tied to the characters round him, it’s way more tied to the relationships he has. We get to fulfill and study extra about every of his teammates. And that kind of impacts his journey. And we study loads about him by how he interacts with different members of his group as they start to distinguish themselves as people, we study loads about him in how he interacts with James Ackerson, who’s the brand new boss of ONI, who takes over the Spartan program. And we realized loads about how he interacts with first the absence of Cortana, after which getting her again later within the season. And all of these items inform us on his emotional state as he goes by the season.

Photo: Adrienn Szabo/Paramount Plus

How was that to get to play all of these sides of the character? As he kind of, such as you stated, learns somewhat bit extra about himself and exhibits extra to the viewers by his interactions with all these new characters?

The extra we see him work together with new and completely different individuals, and the extra these characters which can be outdoors of him start to individualize themselves, the extra we find out about him. You study loads about an individual once they lose issues which can be necessary to them. And there’s an enormous quantity of loss in the midst of the season. And how he and all the remainder of the characters react to that is very telling. And you study loads about how individuals get again off the bottom once they’ve been knocked down. And there’ll be a good quantity of that in the direction of the top of the season as properly.

You’ve talked loads concerning the difficulties of performing beneath all the armor and the helmet and the whole lot. But I did suppose the opening of this season within the scene set on Sanctuary is actually neat and actually affecting, and I’m curious how you’re feeling such as you’ve gotten better at form of emoting and performing beneath all of that for season 2.

Um, no, I like the armor. I like performing in it, I like performing within the helmet, I like performing from behind the face masks. You know, I feel a number of issues have been attributed to me which can be misquotes, issues I’ve stated or taken out of context. I like Master Chief. I like who he is when he’s in his armor. I like who he is behind the masks. I like the method of being within the armor, and the method of performing from behind the masks. It’s invaluable to the character, as everyone knows. And it’s an amazing a part of the journey for me.

So, how I’ve gotten better? I’ve gotten extra affected person with individuals round me, I suppose, when it comes to coping with the challenges of it, nevertheless it was all the time a problem. But it was by no means one which, for me, was one which I didn’t wish to do. In truth, I’ve advocated for maintaining the helmet on in conditions the place it shouldn’t come off. You know, there have been a number of instances within the first season the place I used to be requested to take the helmet off simply so we might see the face. And for me, that’s not in character; he wouldn’t do this. And we shouldn’t do this. And it breaks us from the character. So for me, it was necessary.

The individuals who employed me to do that job, it was necessary to them to see each facets of this twin character: Master Chief and John, a soldier who is discovering his humanity beneath the armor. So it was [an] necessary side to see beneath and to see the face. For me, what has been essential within the second season is to maintain monitor of, you recognize, that the one time we see him beneath the masks or beneath the armor is in a time when it is sensible for us to see in a state of affairs. Obviously we’re not taking the helmet off throughout fight. We’re not taking the helmet off at any level when it shouldn’t be coming off. And we’re actually utilizing the time if you see the group in Reach [or] contained in the UNSC in preparation — these are parts that you just get to see John across the metropolis of Reach outdoors of his armor. All of these items are alternatives to construct the character in a means that you just don’t get to when he’s contained in the go well with.

Image: Paramount Plus

Do you’re feeling like doubling down on emphasizing all of these issues, like when he’s within the armor and the helmet and when he’s not, is one thing that David Wiener (who got here in because the showrunner on season 2) helped out with?

David has a really particular viewpoint. My job as an actor is to deliver to life the imaginative and prescient of the showrunner. First season I used to be bringing to life the imaginative and prescient of the showrunner I used to be working with, [and in the] second season, it’s my job to deliver David Wiener’s imaginative and prescient to life for Halo season 2, and to do the most effective job I can of constructing that the most effective model of it for itself. He has a really particular viewpoint as to when Master Chief ought to be proven in armor and when he shouldn’t. I’ve a selected viewpoint. And so it was a dialog about when these issues, you recognize, when it ought to occur and shouldn’t, however yeah, my job is to deliver his imaginative and prescient to life.

I do know you talked somewhat bit in an interview not too long ago, and be happy to right me if any of this is out of context or something, about your frustrations with the romance plotline from season 1. But I’m curious how you continue to work that into the character in season 2, even when it wasn’t one thing that you just fully agree with as a path for the character.

I actually favored the character of Makee, I feel she’s an amazing addition. Some individuals have a tough time with the truth that she’s a human working throughout the Covenant. I don’t have a tough time with that, as a result of the Covenant is utilizing her for her means as a Reclaimer. I feel that works completely high quality throughout the lore. And I feel she’s an amazing addition when it comes to what she does for John. They’re nice mirrors for one another. They are individuals who have been utilized by the methods that they exist inside, and so they acknowledge that inside one another.

So the whole lot about what they do for one another, apart from the truth that the connection was then used as a romance, to me is actually attention-grabbing and had a number of deserves and will have been a really attention-grabbing plotline. Romance was pointless. It’s high quality. It was what it was. Like I stated, I’m an actor who’s right here to satisfy the imaginative and prescient of the showrunner. That’s what we did. And now you cope with the implications of that. There’s a brand new showrunner who has his imaginative and prescient, and he’s going to make use of these details to create a dynamic that he thinks is the most effective model ahead out of this. It isn’t romantic. And I favor that dynamic with the character of Makee. And I feel there’s extra alternatives for drama inside it. And I like his viewpoint on the dynamic between the characters. So that’s what we’re right here for.

Is there something particularly that you just’re actually excited for individuals to see, or a sure a part of the season that you just actually liked or that stood out to you?

Episode 4 is form of the height of the season. It’s a serious plot level in Halo lore; we’ll get to see it from a brand new and distinctive perspective. I’m actually excited for individuals to see that, due to the truth that I feel, you recognize, all Halo followers are conversant in this occasion. And it’s fairly main for everyone. And additionally, when it comes to the filmmaking, there was a number of… We use a number of “oners,” which is like, making a shot that feels such as you by no means minimize, though we sew collectively all these pictures to make it occur. And it actually gives this tempo to the episode that simply feels inevitable. It’s transferring ahead so quick, and also you nearly can’t cease it. And it’s only a actually attention-grabbing approach to see this explicit occasion in Halo mythology.

It appears like perhaps probably the most motion the present has ever had, and that appears very thrilling.

We had these large plans for motion for season 1, these large set-pieces. There was the episode 1 battle, there’s the episode 5 battle, and the massive battle on the finish. And we made them these large units and these occasions. [And it] took like a month to shoot every one of many issues. But the best way that we shot them was so inefficient. We simply grew to become much more environment friendly this season, so the motion feels extra visceral. You really feel such as you’re extra within the motion as a result of it’s subjective. You’re seeing it from the viewpoint of the character, [it’s] much more handheld, you’re form of in it, there’s fog and you’ll’t fairly see what’s taking place. So all of these parts lend themselves to motion that feels extra visceral and extra speedy and extra harmful. But on the identical time, it’s extra environment friendly to shoot and simpler to shoot. And we spend much less time doing it. So it’s form of the most effective of each worlds, proper? Everybody wins.