There’s a Lot of Loss

Paramount+’s Halo returns this month with Season 2, and showrunner David Wiener is taking viewers into the trenches with the Spartans. Ahead of the season premiere, Collider’s Steve Weintraub got to sit down with the cast and the creatives behind the series in São Paulo, Brazil for CCXP. In this interview, returning star Pablo Schreiber, who plays Master Chief in the show, and Season 2 newcomer, Joseph Morgan, discuss their dynamics and what fans can expect this year.

Season 2 will pick up with Morgan’s character, James Ackerson, stepping in for an MIA Dr. Halsey (Natascha McElhone). We don’t know much about his character, but Morgan does tease that “he prioritizes the greater good of humanity,” and that some sacrifices are necessary. As for Master Chief, the last we saw of the Spartan leader, his AI assistant, Cortana (Jen Taylor) took full control of his body, wiping his personality and mind, in order to snag the artifact. With a new showrunner, a fresh new tone, and direction, the second season plunges us a little deeper into the storyline.

Check out this interview in the video above, or you can read the transcript below to find out which of the eight episodes Schreiber and Morgan are looking forward to you seeing, why Schreiber believes this season is “far superior,” and why the scope and the tone of the show have changed and expanded. The duo also share their hopes and thoughts on Season 3, how to get out of doing stunts, whether Ackerson is truly a villain or not, and tons more.

Halo

Aliens threaten human existence in an epic 26th-century showdown.

Release Date

March 24, 2022

Creator

Steven Kane, Kyle Killen

Main Genre

Sci-Fi

Seasons

2

Read Our ‘Halo’ Season 2 Review

COLLIDER: Gentlemen, let me start by saying the Season 2 teaser trailer I just watched looks fantastic. That looks really good. I think it’s eight episodes, the second season?

PABLO SCHREIBER: That’s correct.

Joseph Morgan Can’t Keep His Hands Off Pablo Schreiber’s Artifacts in ‘Halo’ Season 2

So, of the eight episodes, which are you most looking forward to fans seeing? Is it Episode 6, Episode 4?

SCHREIBER: There’s a couple episodes for me in the middle that I’m in. I’m really curious to the reaction, but I think the biggest one I can’t wait for people to see is just [Episode] 1 just because of the new tone, the new feel. Everything. I’m just curious to see how people react to the newness of this season.

JOSEPH MORGAN: Yeah, Episode 1, certainly, because it’s the introduction for me of my character, and to invite people into that world and for them to see it. And then I would say, as well for me, Episode 3, just because, again, for Ackerson there’s just an insight into his character there, a bit of more of a personal insight, which I’m really excited to see how that spins people’s opinion after seeing the first two episodes.

Is Episodes 3 where you touch a certain artifact?

MORGAN: [Laughs] I may or may not touch a certain artifact at any point during the…

It’s in the trailer.

MORGAN: Damn it! [Laughs]

SCHREIBER: Don’t be touching my artifacts, boy.

MORGAN: “You keep your hands off my artifact.”

SCHREIBER: [Laughs] You keep your hands off my artifact.

‘Halo’ Season 2 Puts Viewers in the Battle

One of the things I really enjoyed about Season 1 was you guys had some really good action set pieces, and the trailer that we just saw teases some pretty crazy action set pieces. I know it’s all about the characters and character journeys, but…

MORGAN: But it’s big, as well, right?

I know a lot of fans also love when you’re kicking ass, so what can you tease about the action?

SCHREIBER: Personally, I just think the action, if you liked it in Season 1, that’s great. I think it’s far superior in Season 2. And for me, the reason why it’s far superior is that it puts you in the action rather than standing back and letting you watch it. It feels much more visceral. It feels much more engaging. It feels like you’re a part of the battle, and that’s all done through camera work and camera movement. And for me, it’s a much better tonal match for the show.

Is Joseph Morgan’s ‘Halo’ Character Truly a Villain?

[To Morgan] What can you actually tease a little bit more about your character? Perhaps villain, antagonist, protagonist? Where is he on the chart?

MORGAN: First of all, I think everyone’s the hero of their own story, so I think Ackerson, in his mind, is certainly not a villain. He prioritizes the greater good of humanity, so I think everything he does throughout the whole course of the show is because he genuinely believes it’s the right thing to do. There will be sacrifices along the way, but those are necessary sacrifices. [Laughs]

Got it. Antagonist.

SCHREIBER: [Laughs] I’ll chime in on that, because one of the joys of watching Season 2 is not just Joseph’s performance but getting to see how Ackerson is spooled out. He’s introduced as what feels like a traditional villain, and then I think as the season goes on and on, there’s depth that’s added, layer by layer, that makes you feel differently, piece by piece.

A great antagonist is someone who can justify what they’re doing and demonstrate to the audience, like, “Maybe this is actually the right path to go on.”

MORGAN: So you understand why they did it even if you don’t agree with it. Absolutely.

100%.

MORGAN: And it was a gift of a wonderful arc written for me in the show which allowed that. So, yeah, I’m very grateful for that.

Pablo Schreiber Says There Will Be Massive Loss in ‘Halo’ Season 2

I’m curious, also, about Season 2 and how it expands the mythology of Halo. What can you talk about in terms of the mythology?

SCHREIBER: Not much, I’ll be honest. But I think one of the keys to this season is that it’s darker in a way. And in order to hit that darkness, there’s a lot of loss that happens. So, characters are gonna interact with this loss in a way that is different for each of them. It’s a massive loss that I think we all might be aware of.

MORGAN: Necessary sacrifices are made. [Laughs]

For both of you, you see the shooting schedule: what is a day you have circled in terms of, “I cannot wait to shoot this,” or, “Oh my god, I can’t believe we have to shoot this?”

MORGAN: I just loved to be on set there, so every day that I could be there doing these scenes with these great actors and working with the producers and writers… Like David, our showrunner, would be on set and we’d be working. It’s such a huge budget show, but we’d be working in, like, a little theater troupe, refining the scene, running it. “How does this work? Let’s cut these lines. Let’s rearrange it.” Up until the very last moment, we’re working to make it feel organic and feel natural, and it was so exciting to me. So, you know, every chance I got, I’d circle all the days. [Laughs] “I can’t wait to get it done,” you know?

SCHREIBER: For me, after the experience of Season 1, I knew how challenging the battle sequences were to shoot, in terms of doing stunts while in the costume. I quickly made sure that the stunt guys were gonna be doing all of those for Season 2. [Laughs] But then something would come up on the call sheet where there were some stunts that would happen where I’m not in the suit, and those I knew I couldn’t get away with not doing, so I had those circled as things that were gonna be challenging.

Related

‘Halo’ Season 2 Resets the Tone & Expands on the Games — But Master Chief Is Still Taking Off the Helmet

“If all you’re doing is recreating the same experience you had when you played the video game, then what are you adding to the franchise?”

I don’t think people realize, also, what a marathon it is to make a television show and the hours that go into making something like this. I mean, they’re long hours.

MORGAN: It’s long days, and it’s not just a set schedule. So, one day you’re shooting 14 hours through the day and then I think there were about six weeks of nights on this season. There’s all sorts of shifts in your schedule, as well. So, yeah, it’s certainly challenging.

SCHREIBER: We shot eight episodes. I was there for a year, to give you an indication. [Laughs]

Is the ‘Halo’ Cast Gearing Up for Season 3 Already?

Exactly. You’ve just demonstrated. So, now that you’ve done Season 2, it’s pretty clear that maybe the studio might want a Season 3 — just throwing that out there. So, how much are you in your brain already mentally preparing? Because it’s a huge commitment, especially for your family.

SCHREIBER: Blocking out the next five or 10 years.

Perhaps.

SCHREIBER: Who knows? Let’s see. Let’s leave all of those questions to other people. I’d be happy to make more if more is what’s on the calendar. Other than that, we’ll just wait for February 8th and see how everybody receives it.

Exactly. When Season 2 ends, what do you think fans will be thinking?

SCHREIBER: “Give me more!”

MORGAN: Yeah, hopefully. And kind of like, “Oh, shit,” but in a good way.

When you think about the shoot of Season 2, what’s the day that you think you’ll always remember in terms of one of those crazy days on set or just a great day with friends?

SCHREIBER: The days that I’ll remember, whether we shoot more Halo or don’t shoot more Halo, for Season 1 and Season 2 is the camaraderie of working with the people that we worked with. Almost every Saturday night we would gather and do karaoke in a little basement bar right next to the building I lived in in Season 1, and it was just fantastic because we work so hard. You spend so much time and so much energy, and it’s so physical and tough for everybody, and to get to blow steam off at the end of the week with the people that you’re working with, for me, is just one of the great joys of getting to do what I do.

MORGAN: Yeah, I mean, so, so many of the days, but certainly my first day I will always remember. It was just such a big day, a challenging day for me in terms of the amount of dialogue.

SCHREIBER: Yeah, they threw you right in.

MORGAN: They threw me into the deep end, and in front of all of this cast. I mean, it was just such a tremendous experience. It just went so well and everyone was so generous.

SCHREIBER: “Welcome to Halo! Here’s a three-page monologue.”

MORGAN: Yeah, that’s what it was. [Laughs] It was kind of terrifying, but then elating, as well, to feel like, “Oh, I’m a part of this thing. These people really care about this thing, and we’re doing this together.” And to see how Pablo led by example on the set. As soon as I saw that, I thought, “Okay, this is going to be great, a great eight months or nine months.” And it really was. But I’ll never forget that first day.

Halo Season 2 begins streaming on Paramount+ on February 8. Hit the link below to refresh on Season 1.

Watch on Paramount