With the two HALO episodes aired so far, the numbers have been really good for Paramount+. However, some fans are not too happy with the alterations, including having Master Chief take off his familiar headgear. Regardless, Paramount+ has decided to release the full first episode for free online.
HALO Paramount+ hits record numbers
Produced by Steven Spielberg, the HALO series had a long development and production history. A television series based on the popular Xbox action shooter was in the works since 2013. That it took nearly 10 years for it to come to fruition is a testament to the challenges it had to work with. Having it birthed on the Paramount+ streaming service instead of a network is one of the major changes the series experienced over the years.
— Deadline Hollywood (@DEADLINE) March 25, 2022
— Steve Downes (@SteveDownes117) March 29, 2022 That was, until HALO premiered to overwhelming viewer results. It has even surpassed the earlier viewership numbers set by 1883’s own premiere episode. Being attached to a video game property with a dedicated and large fanbase may have helped with the marketing, particularly with the franchise experiencing a sort of renaissance thanks to HALO Infinite.
Keep your helmet on
In a statement by Tanya Giles, Paramount’s Chief Programming Officer, the executive expressed gratitude and hinted at the future plans for HALO the series: Although specific viewer numbers were not revealed, Paramount+ is obviously quite happy with the turnout for HALO’s debut and retaining the high numbers for its second episode. This is despite some fan backlash that the show has taken liberties with the canon, particularly having the series protagonist Master Chief (Pablo Schreiber) uncharacteristically and regularly remove his helmet. The second episode even had the helmet off for most of its running time.
— Plathanos 🐝🇩🇴 #HIVESZN (@SavinTheBees) March 31, 2022
— Alt-Right Barclay (@BigDickBarclay) April 2, 2022
Any face, any race if you wanna go there. It was up to your imagination. Now, it’s forever this guy, what a joke. pic.twitter.com/xO00r3pEc4 — YellowFlash (@YellowFlashGuy) March 25, 2022 Although expanded material like novels do have the iconic Spartan John-117 take off his helmet, what he looked like underneath had always been a mystery. Even the video games never clearly showed his face without the helmet.
HALO Episode 1 free on YouTube
To celebrate the success of the HALO series, Paramount Plus has released the first episode for free on its official YouTube channel: The episode is available in its entirety and in high definition, however, just not for viewers outside the United States. There is no official word on whether this status will change, in order to allow international audiences to see the episode on YouTube. HALO the series stars Pablo Schreiber as Spartan John-117/Master Chief, Natascha McElhone as Dr. Halsey, Jen Taylor as the A.I. Cortana, Bokeem Woodbine as Soren-066, Shabana Azmi as Admiral Margaret Parangosky, Danny Sapani as Captain Jacob Keyes, Olive Gray as Miranda Keyes, Yerin Ha as Kwan Ha Boo, Bentley Kalu as Vannak-134, Kate Kennedy as Kai-125, Natasha Culzac as Riz-028, and Charlie Murphy as Makee. HALO the series on Paramount+ airs a new episode every Thursday. Season 1 of the series will run for 9 episodes through May 19, 2022. The second season has already been greenlit and is in the early production stages.
