‘The Last Of Us’ TV Series Will Star Pedro Pascal And Bella Ramsey
The Last of UsTV series headed to HBO has found its leads.The Mandalorian’sPedro Pascalwill play main character Joel, whileGame of ThronesbreakoutBella Ramseywill play Ellie, a teenage girl Joel is protecting. The show is based on the popular, bleak video game set in a post-apocalyptic United States ravaged by “hostile humans and cannibalistic creatures infected by a mutated fungus.“ChernobylcreatorCraig Mazinis writing the script with game writerNeil Druckmann.BeanpolehelmerKantemir Balagovis directing the pilot.
This news comes to us from two different sources. Deadline broke the news that Pedro Pascal will star in the series as Joel, “a hardened survivor” who is “tormented by past trauma and failure.” The story is set twenty years after the collapse of civilization, and Joel is hired to “smuggle Ellie, a 14-year-old girl, out of an oppressive quarantine zone. What starts as a small job soon becomes a brutal, heartbreaking journey, as they both must traverse across the U.S. and depend on each other for survival.” Rumors had been circulating that Mahershala Ali was set to play Joel, but it was later confirmed that while Ali had considered the part, a deal never came together. Hours later it was confirmed that Pascal would be playing the role.
As for Ellie,THRreports thatGame of Thronesactress Bella Ramsey is playing that part, described as “a 14-year-old orphan who has never known anything but a ravaged planet who struggles to balance her instinct for anger and defiance with her need for connection and belonging … as well as the newfound reality that she may be the key to saving the world.” Ramsey earned praise for her work as Lyanna Mormont onGame of Thrones. Pascal was onThrones, too, although he and Ramsey appeared in different seasons.
The Last of Usgame was released in 2013, and resulted in a huge hit that earned high praise. It became one of the best-selling video games in recent years, selling over 1.3 million units in its first week and 17 million by April 2018. It’s also often cited as averybleak, depressing game, so you should probably expect the TV series to follow suit. In 2020,The Last of Us Part IIwas released, and by all accounts, it was even more upsetting and stark.
I’ve not played either game, but I’m a fan of Pascal and I thoughtChernobylwas excellent. It was also a very hard show to watch, so writer Craig Mazin might have the market cornered there on must-see-TV that also makes you kind of miserable. On top of that, this will now be the second show where Pedro Pascal is protecting a child. So it goes.The Last of Uswill come to HBO via Sony Pictures Television, PlayStation Productions, Word Games, The Mighty Mint, and game developer Naughty Dog.
