Halo’s showrunner has pleaded with the industry after the show was cancelled after just two seasons.
The much-loved video game adaptation first launched on Paramount+ in 2022, earning rave reviews and breaking viewership records for the service in the process.
However, season 2 received lukewarm reviews on its release in February 2024, and just a month later it was confirmed the series would not be renewed, despite ending on a cliffhanger.
Now, showrunner Steven Kane has urged people in the industry to be more mindful with future shows, saying they’re at risk of “becoming overly reliant on data” over creative endeavours, and will “become afraid of taking chances”.
Speaking at German TV festival Seriencamp (via Deadline), Kane admitted that adapting a video game came with its own pressures, as he had to face “20 years of history in a transmedia world” to face against.
“The fans will hate everything you do at first,” he said. “You have to accept that comes with the territory and the game company doesn’t want to destroy the IP either – it’s a lot of pressure. There is a huge responsibility to the fans.”
However, data driven decisions from those higher up are having the bigger effect.
“It’s when you are told the algorithm says the script is boring because ChatGPT says so,” he said.
“The audience should be the final contributor and if they give you feedback you don’t just look at the note, you find the note behind the note and think why isn’t this working?”
He added: “They think, ‘You’re going to be boring for four seconds and we can’t have them [the viewers] bored, they’ll go on their phone, so please make sure you explain again’.
“How do you pander to that?”
Kane then begged those in charge of show futures not to “lose the humanity behind the storytelling”.
As well as Halo, Kane has previously worked on a string of adaptations including the TV series of Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan starring John Krasinski and the Last Ship (which was initially based on the 1988 novel by William Brinkley).
An official reason for Halo’s cancellation was never given, with the statement from Paramount+ stating at the time “Paramount Plus can confirm that Halo will not move forward with a third season on the service.
“We are extremely proud of this ambitious series and would like to thank our partners at Xbox, 343 Industries and Amblin Television, along with showrunner and executive producer David Wiener, his fellow executive producers, the entire cast led by Pablo Schreiber as Master Chief and the amazing crew for all their outstanding work.
“We wish everyone the best going forward.”
Halo is available to watch in full now on Paramount+.
Check out more of our Sci-Fi coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what’s on.
Try Radio Times magazine today and get 10 issues for only £10 – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
