"Halo" TV Series Gets a New Cortana: IGN reports that Natasha McElhone, who was originally cast as this blue AI and its creator, Dr. Catherine Halsey, has two roles due to scheduling conflicts caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. unable to play the role. Showtime therefore cast Jen Taylor instead.

Taylor, as you can see from IMDB, is a very experienced voice actress with a career spanning over 20 years, including (and this is important) playing Col. in every major "Halo" game from "Combat Evolved" to the upcoming "Halo: Infinite" This includes her role as Cortana. (In other words, she knows the character so well that one wonders why she wasn't cast in the role in the first place.

Other voice roles Taylor has held over the years include Kate Archer in No One Lives Forever 2 and Contract Jack, Jessica Cannon in Sin Episodes, Zoe in Left 4 Dead, Infinite Crisis. Atomic Wonder Woman, and Princess Peach from the Mario mountain of games.

McElhone continues to play Halsey (who, somewhat amusingly, also voices Taylor in the "Halo" games) in the TV series. It is unknown at this time whether Taylor will appear as Cortana or simply voice the CGI character.

Showtime's Halo series was announced in 2013, but production did not begin in earnest until 2018. Pablo Schreiber of The Wire and Orange is the New Black was unveiled as the show's master chief in 2019, and the rest of the cast was revealed later that year. An official air date has not yet been announced, but it is expected to appear in the first quarter of 2021.