Paramount+ announced today that the second season of their series adaptation of beloved video game Halo has begun filming in Iceland, with additional photography to take place in Budapest later on this year. Along with the announcement of the sophmore season getting production underway, it was also announced that Joseph Morgan (Vampire Diaries, The Originals) and Cristina Rodlo (No One Gets Out of Here Alive, The Homeless World Cup) will join the cast as new series regulars.
Morgan joins the series as James Ackerson, a character that fans of Halo's extended universe will be familiar with. He is described in the official press release as a "formidable intelligence operative who has spent his career climbing the ranks of the UNSC’s secretive Office of Naval Intelligence." Rodlo is set to play a UNSC Marine Corp corporal named Talia Perez. She specializes in linguistics as a member of a communications unit and is still relatively new recruit who has yet to see any real combat.
Morgan and Rodlo join a cast that includes Pablo Schreiber (American Gods) as long-time series lead John-117, the Master Chief as well as Natascha McElhone (Californication) as integral franchise character Dr. Halsey, both of whom also serve as producers this season. Other cast members include Fiona O’Shaughnessy and Tylan Bailey, who played Laera and Kessler in the first season, respectively, who will be returning as series regulars for Season 2. Other cast members include Jen Taylor (Halo game series, RWBY) as Cortana, Bokeem Woodbine (Fargo), Shabana Azmi (Fire), Natasha Culzac (The Witcher), Olive Gray (Half Moon Investigations), Yerin Ha (Reef Break), Bentley Kalu (Avengers: Age of Ultron), Kate Kennedy (Catastrophe), Charlie Murphy (Peaky Blinders), and Danny Sapani (Penny Dreadful).
The Halo series at Paramount+ is based on the video game series of the same name that first debuted back in 2001, that takes place in the 26th century and focuses on humanity's conflict with an alien force known as The Covenant. Produced by Showtime in association with current Halo developers 343 Industries and Amblin Television, the TV series adaptation is lead by showrunner David Wiener, who also serves as executive producer on the series. Other executive producers on Season 2 of the series include Steven Spielberg, Darryl Frank and Justin Falvey for Amblin Television as well as Kiki Wolfkill, Frank O’Connor, and Bonnie Ross via for 343 Industries and Otto Bathurst and Toby Leslie for One Big Picture.
Halo Season 2 is currently in production with the entirety of the first season available to stream on Paramount+. The first season of Halo will also receive a 4K UHD Steelbook release on November 15, with DVD and Blu-ray versions also releasing on the same date as a digital release is set for November 7. You can check out a trailer for the series adaptation of the acclaimed video game franchise down below.