HBO’s The Last of Us offers some new initial details as production has begun.
A lot of fans have been wondering whether there would be a live-action adaptation of the PlayStation’s hit game, The Last of Us (even though the game already feels like a cinematic experience). After much speculation, it has been confirmed and filming for the TV show has already started. The video game developer behind The Last of Us, Naughty Dog, recently released the first still from the HBO show, which will leave fans excited.
The photo above shows the backs of the two iconic protagonists from the video game, Joel and Ellie, staring at a plane crash on a grassy hill in the distance. The main cast has also been released. Pedro Pascal (The Mandalorian) will play the role of Joel and the role of Ellie will be played by Bella Ramsey, best known for her outstanding, breakout performance as Lyanna Mormont in one of HBO’s greatest shows, Game of Thrones. Of course, Pascal also had his role in Game of Thrones, so this is a nice reunion of sorts, except in this one Pascal doesn’t have to fight a trial by combat.
If you haven’t had the chance to check out The Last of Us game, that’s okay. The show is expected to follow the same general storyline as the video game.
Essentially, the story follows a hardened man, Joel, and a teenage girl, Ellie, in 2033, twenty years after a fungal outbreak spreads like wildfire across the United States. The virus turned humans into zombie-like creatures called “the Infected”. Joel is a smuggler tasked by a resistance group called the Fireflies, with getting Ellie out of their quarantine zone in the North End of Boston, Massachusetts. The leader of the Fireflies, Marlene, believes Ellie could have the answer to many of the world’s questions. The game follows these two characters as they traverse post-apocalyptic America.
The supporting cast has Gabriel Luna (Terminator: Dark Fate) as Joel’s brother, Tommy, Nico Parker (Reminiscence) as Joel’s daughter, Sarah, and Merle Dandridge who voices the character, Marlene, and will now play the same role on television.
The writers and executive producers will be headed by Craig Mazin who worked on HBO’s historical drama, Chernobyl, and Neil Druckmann who was a writer and creative director for The Last of Us video game.
HBO’s The Last of Us has no planned release date yet, but we can expect this collaboration with Sony Pictures Television, PlayStation Productions, Word Games, Naughty Dog and HBO will be something very interesting to look forward to once production wraps.
