Pablo Schreiber, an actor who has appeared on The Wire, American Gods, and of course, in the cinematic masterpiece Den of Thieves, is joining the United Nations Space Command. Schreiber will play Master Chief on Showtime’s Halo TV series, based on the wildly popular video games. The series takes place in the 26th century, and deals with soldiers battling the Covenant, a collection of aliens from different planets all targeting Earth. More on the Halo TV series cast below.

Halo has found its Master Chief in Pablo Schreiber. The network is describing Schreiber’s character as “Earth’s most advanced warrior in the 26th century and the only hope of salvation for a civilization pushed to the brink of destruction by the Covenant, an unstoppable alliance of alien worlds committed to the destruction of humanity.”

Master Chief is an iconic character, and has essentially become a mascot for the Xbox game console. His popularity means Schreiber has some big space boots to fill. It’s worth noting that Master Chief never takes his helmet off in the Halo games – something I doubt the TV series is going to stick to. Then again, maybe Schreiber is game enough to sign up for a role where he wears a helmet all the time.

Schreiber has acted in films like Den of Thieves, Skyscraper and the recent First Man. He’s also had roles on American Gods, Orange is the New Black, The Wire, Weeds and more. He’s talented actor, and an unexpected choice for a role of this nature.

In addition to Schreiber, the series has also cast newcomer Yerin Ha to play an all-new female character: “Quan Ah, a shrewd, audacious 16-year-old from the Outer Colonies who meets Master Chief at a fateful time for them both.”

Showtime says their Halo series will dramatize “an epic 26th-century conflict between humanity and an alien threat known as the Covenant,” and that the show “will weave deeply drawn personal stories with action, adventure and a richly imagined vision of the future.”

The Halo games are wildly popular and expansive, and many fans assumed only the biggest possible budget movie series could bring them to life. That’s not what’s happening with the Showtime series, however, so it remains to be seen how this will all turn out. Kyle Killen (Awake) and Steven Kane (The Last Ship) serve as co-showrunners and executive producers on the Halo TV series, which hails from Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Television. Production is expected to begin this fall.