HBO’s The Last Of Us Not Coming This Year

I’ll be the first one to say it: I was very high praising of Naughty Dog’s 2013 PS3 grimy action shoot ’em up, The Last of Us when it was released. I loved it despite finding Joel about as likable as a stale box of cereal, and generally, the motive was entirely made on a childhood filled with Disney’s Recess. Ashley Johnson’s voice was similar enough to notice Ellie, the only likable person for having a hint of a character. The fact that Ellie was voiced by Gretchen Grundler made an instant connection and made me like her more than I should have.

Which makes it quite difficult to pindown why I didn’t like The Last of Us Part II, but makes it simple to find out why I don’t have a flicker of emotion for HBO’s upcoming The Last of US series. The hyped-up TV adaptation seems to be pumping the brakes a little bit on the not-zombie apocalypse, as HBO and HBO Max Chief Content Officer (a horrendous title to have) Casey Bloys gave an update to Deadline in an interview. “It’s not going to air in 2022 – they are still shooting in Canada. I imagine you will see it in ’23.”

Bloys went on to state, “I have seen some early episodes and I’m very excited.” Continuing talking about showrunner Craig Mazin’s work, he added “Craig did Chernobyl for us, he is a fantastic writer and director. What I’ve seen looks amazing, so I’m excited for it, but it will not be in ’22.” I have one issue with that, and I will say upfront that I enjoyed Chernobyl (the series, not the event), but one is a serious show based on the very real-world factual event that occurred and the other is a piece of complete fiction. Compare the two yes, but qualify that it is based on his quality of work and not leave it open to be associated with tone instead.

Keep in mind, Mazin’s work also includes such classics as Scary Movie 3 and 4, Superhero Movie, and the two Hangover sequels. Not to mention his upcoming work on the Borderlands film, Pirates of the Caribbean 6 of all things, and his work on Mythic Quest. All this said: I do hope Mazin can pull off the unenviable task of making an adaption that pleases the most ardent of fans. The show is starring Pedro Pascal, notably of The Mandolorian, as Joel and Bella Ramsey, notably of Game of Thrones, as Ellie, and we know the show wrapped the pilot back in August.

It will also see the return of Merle Dandridge as Marlene, Anna Torv as Tess, Gabriel Luna as Tommy, and Nick Offerman as Bill, among a few other castings. As reported by Eurogamer last July, the show is expected to have a budget of $10-million an episode, topping out at around $200-million for the entire series. Meanwhile, music will be provided by the composer of both games, Gustavo Santaolalla. Filming is expected to conclude in June, just in time for a quick turnaround to edit a teaser to put out around E3, maybe?

The Last of Us will be one of many adaptations of games, including BioShock, Yakuza, Beyond Good and Evil, The Division, Gears of War, Just Cause, Cyberpunk 2077, Fallout, Mass Effect, more Resident Evil, and the often forgotten about Watch_Dogs film from Sony, among many others. I may be the only one saying this, but maybe we should find one (mostly live-action) adaptation based on a game that is good before we start commissioning several of these franchises to make the jump? Then again, I am not the one with $10-million per episode to spend on something that will be derided by psychos who just want more of the same, so what do I know.