Halo TV Series Recasts Cortana With Original Voice Actress

IGN can exclusively reveal that Showtime's Halo TV series has recast its Cortana actress, bringing in Jen Taylor for the role. You'll know Taylor from her role as Cortana in all the mainline Halo games. Cortana, the AI that assists (and occasionally turns on) Master Chief throughout the game series, was originally due to be played on TV by Natascha McElhone, who was cast in a dual role, also playing Cortana's creator, Dr. Catherine Halsey. Due to scheduling difficulties caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, McElhone can no longer complete her work as Cortana - but will continue in the role of Halsey. [caption id="attachment_2436796" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Cortana and Jen Taylor[/caption] Step in Jen Taylor, who reprises the role she's played in Halo 1, 2, 3, Reach, 4, 5, and as Microsoft's virtual assistant on Windows devices. Taylor has also played Catherine Halsey in the game series, but that won't be the case here. It's not yet clear if Taylor will play the role in-person, or lend her performance to a full CGI character. Taylor will join Pablo Schreiber as Master Chief, David Sapani and Olive Gray as Jacob and Miranda Keyes, Bokeem Woodbine as Soren-066, Shabana Azmi as Admiral Margaret Parangosky, and Bentley Kalu, Natasha Culzac and Kate Kennedy as three new Spartan characters. The Showtime series is being made in production with game developers 343 Industries and Steven Spielberg's Amblin Entertainment. Peaky Blinders and Black Mirror director Otto Bathurst is due to direct and executive produce the 9-episode first season. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2018/01/10/the-halo-tv-series-what-we-want"] It's not totally clear what the show's plot will centre on, but Showtime explains that it will dramatise "an epic 26th-century conflict between humanity and an alien threat known as the Covenant. Halo will weave deeply drawn personal stories with action, adventure and a richly imagined vision of the future." One major deviation from the games may come in the form of seeing Master Chief's face, but that remains unconfirmed. Behind closed doors, we've seen Schreiber wearing the Chief's iconic armour, and can report that it looks fantastic. With the major players all now seemingly in place, all that's left to find out is when we'll actually be able to watch the show – a question we sadly still can't answer. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Joe Skrebels is IGN's Executive Editor of News. Follow him on Twitter. Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com.

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