HBO’s The Last of Us has found its Joel
According to Deadline, Pedro Pascal (GOT, The Mandalorian) will portray Joel in HBO’s television adaptation of The Last of Us. Pascal will be joined alongside co-star Bella Ramsey (GOT), who will portray the 14-year old Ellie. The Hollywood Reporter was the first to break the story on Ellie’s casting.
Deadline gave an overview of the plot, stating that the story “takes place twenty years after modern civilization has been destroyed.” Pascal’s Joel, who is described as “a hardened survivor” and “tormented by past trauma and failure,” is tasked with smuggling 14-year old Ellie “out of an oppressive quarantine zone.”
From these details alone, the series is shaping up to be a direct retelling of the original game’s plot from 2013’s smash hit The Last of Us, developed by Naughty Dog for the PlayStation 3 system. Which later received a remastered version for the PlayStation 4. As of June 2018, the game had sold over 17 million copies.
Things seem to be going well for The Last of Us
Chernobyl’s Craig Mazin will write for The Last of Us television series, and Neil Druckmann serving both as a writer and Executive Producer. Druckmann has already responded to the casting reports for Ellie and Joel; this is what he had to say via Twitter:
We’re absolutely thrilled to have Bella join the TLoU family! https://t.co/4v9TbLhcMr
— Dr. Uckmann (@Neil_Druckmann) February 11, 2021
This tweet was then followed by another:
Aaaaand there’s the other half. Stoked to have Pedro aboard our show! https://t.co/Etsjvfb2Wi
Druckmann is quite pleased with the cast by the sounds of things, which is a good sign. I’m very excited to see Pascal take on the role of Joel, he’s an incredible talent, and I think he’s capable of doing a fantastic job with the character. I loved the original Last of Us and am excited to see this series reach our screens!
