Is Master Chief not the main character of Halo 5?

We already knew that Agent Jameson Locke, the main character of Ridley Scott's live-action Halo: Nightfall series, would make an appearance in Halo 5: Guardians. Now, a recent interview with actor Mike Coulter, who plays Locke, suggests that he could be the primary focus of the series' immediate future.

Speaking with X-One magazine (via an Imgur post showing the article), Colter called Agent Locke — whose origin story will be told in the Nightfall TV series — the "primary character," though it's unclear whether Coulter is referring to Locke becoming the protagonist in Halo 5, or if perhaps his character amounts to a protagonist, given how much players will see and interact with him.

"Once Halo: The Master Chief Collection is released, and then Halo 5 comes out shortly thereafter, you're basically going to be playing a game with me as the primary character," Colter said. "I'll have some cool weaponry, and some cool abilities, because by that time I'll be a Spartan IV."

This isn't the first time the Halo series has moved away from Master Chief for a chunk of its main campaign. Bungie's Halo 2 — the second installment in the original Halo trilogy — gave significant screen time to the Arbiter, an alien. It's not much of a stretch to think that, for the second time in the saga, players will spend significant time with a different character.

Colter also revealed that part of Halo 5's story will focus on the search for Master Chief, who in turn in searching for something of his own following the events of Halo 4. But Colter wouldn't say what Agent Locke's relationship is to the Master Chief, whether it be friend or foe or what the final objective of the "manhunt" will be.

"Is he dead or alive?" Colter teased. "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."

Halo: Nightfall will launch as an episodic series alongside Halo: The Master Chief Collection next month. Halo 5 is currently slated to launch sometime next year.