Getting to Know Halo’s Agent Locke

This week, “Halo: Nightfall” kicked off alongside the release of Halo: The Master Chief Collection. The five-part digital feature brings viewers back to the fragment of the original Halo ring from the original Halo: Combat Evolved. Rather than Master Chief, however, the series centers around Agent Jameson Locke, a soldier who has the rather unenviable task of leading an assault to defeat the Covenant insurgency. Mike Colter is the actor who fills Locke’s combat boots in “Nightfall,” and Locke will ultimately become a playable character and protagonist in next year’s Halo 5: Guardians.

Set between the events of Halo 4 and Halo 5: Guardians, “Halo: Nightfall” serves as Locke’s origin story. It follows him and his team of agents from the Office of Naval Intelligence, as they’re caught in an insurgent attack while pushing toward an ancient artifact on the distant colony of Sedra. Sometime between “Halo: Nightfall” and Halo 5: Guardians, Locke becomes a Spartan IV – the latest wave of super-soldiers being trained by the UNSC. Unlike previous generations of Spartans, the Spartan IVs are made up of volunteers, rather than kids who have been willfully persuaded.

Colter has described Locke as a pragmatist, and a man willing to die for the sake of his mission. Locke’s motivation, however, still remains somewhat unclear. “What’s not known is whether I’m a friend or foe,” Colter recently told OXM UK. “The relationship between Master Chief and Jameson Locke is going to be interesting. Because, what’s the outcome? Is he dead or alive? Because that’s usually what a manhunt comes down to – dead or alive – but you won’t know what the purpose of finding Master Chief is [right away]. Or what will happen if we do find him, what condition he will be in, and where he’s at mentally. But I’m sure that’ll be a plot twist in Halo 5.”

We’re given a bit more insight into this dynamic as Locke interrogates the Arbiter about John-117 (AKA Master Chief) in the new cut-scenes that bookend Halo 2: Anniversary. Still, Colter himself says that he doesn’t know the answers to these (or many other) questions, as the writers tell him only what he needs to know for the scenes he’s working on.

For a taste of what Locke is all about before his playable premiere next year, check out “Halo: Nightfall” when you pick up Halo: The Master Chief Collection, now available for Xbox One.