Showtime’s upcoming live-action Halo TV series has recast the voice actress playing the role of Cortana with Jen Taylor, the actress who voiced Cortana throughout every game in the Halo franchise, as well as Microsoft’s virtual assistant software on its Windows operating system.
A report out of IGN tells us that Natascha McElhone, the actress originally cast in the role of the super intelligent A.I. Cortana, as well as its creator Dr. Catherine Halsey, is unable to fulfill her obligation to both roles because of scheduling conflicts caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite being unable to play the role of Cortana, McElhone will continue in the role of Halsey, the individual behind the Spartan supersoldier program, who also personally selected John better know as “Master Chief,” for the Spartan program.
Taylor has been a professional voice actress since 1993 and in addition to the Halo franchise, has voiced famous video game characters such as Zoey from Left 4 Dead, as well as Princess Peach, Toad, and Toadette in various Mario games.
The live-action Halo series was first announced in 2013 but work didn’t begin on it in earnest until 2018. It’s being created through a collaboration between Showtime, Amblin Television, and 343 Industries; fans should expect to see 10 one-hour episodes. The story will focus on the 26th-century war between the United Nations Space Command and the alien Covenant, with a similar timeline to the first game in the Halo franchise, Halo: Combat Evolved. The series is scheduled to premiere on Showtime in the first quarter of 2021 and is being helmed by critically acclaimed showrunner Kyle Killen (Awake, Lone Star, and Mind Games).
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