Halo's Master Chief TV Show Actor Won't Try To Replicate Steve Downes' Voice, Apparently

Master Chief actor Pablo Schreiber has said he won't do an impression on the Halo TV show, suggesting he won't try to replicate Steve Downes' iconic voice from the video game series.

Writing on Twitter, Schreiber said, "I don't do impressions, I play characters." He said the video games focus on Master Chief the super-soldier, but the TV show will provide more depth and insight on the man under the helmet, John.

"I don't do impressions, I play characters. While everyone knows the Master Chief, this show is an opportunity for all of us to get to know John," he said. "Thank you for your kind words. We are all working incredibly hard to bring something to the screen that everyone can get behind."

In 2019, it was teased by Showtime boss Gary Levine that Master Chief's helmet would come off in the Halo TV show. That's a big deal because Master Chief keeps his helmet on during most of the Halo video games.

As Schreiber is alluding to in his tweet, it appears the Halo TV show will focus more on John as opposed to Master Chief, so it makes sense that he wouldn't be wearing his helmet the whole time.

Halo's transmedia boss Kiki Wolfkill is heading up the production of the Halo TV show for Microsoft, and she recently spoke about how the program will take risks and present something new to fans--and fans may not like it.

"It's amazing to have these dedicated fanbases and communities. But it's also hard because there are so many diverse perspectives. At some point, you can't satisfy all the voices. You need to have your own voice," she said.

The Halo TV show stars Orange is the New Black's Pablo Schreiber as Master Chief, with Californication's Natascha McElhone as Dr. Halsey. Jen Taylor, who voices Cortana in the video games, will voice the character on the TV show as well.

The Halo TV show will premiere in 2022 on Paramount+.

As for the video game series, Halo Infinite launches this fall for Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. The multiplayer element will be completely free-to-play, while Game Pass subscribers can get the campaign at no extra cost.