The ambitions of The Last of Us will be clear from the first episode: the premiere of the series will in fact have a length of a feature film, a good 85 minutes.
This is revealed by the factsheet on HBO Latino programming .
We don’t know what events will be covered by the first episode, but we will probably see the famous prologue with Joel ( Pedro Pascal ), his daughter Sarah ( Nico Parker ) and Tommy ( Gabriel Luna ), brother of Joel . If the show follows along with the game, we will also see Joel and Tess ( Anna Torv ) trade several years later, when civilization as we know it has now collapsed due to the fungal pandemic. Probably there will be a meeting with Ellie ( Bella Ramsey ), but it is only a hypothesis.
Craig Mazin ( Chernobyl , Borderlands ) created the series for HBO , and has been able to count on Neil Druckmann – author of the Naughty Dog game – as co-director and co-writer. This transposition aims to expand the original story, adding some elements that were cut from the video game. The debut in Italy is expected on January 16 on Sky and NOW .
We will keep you posted.
The Last of Us HBO Episode 1 confirmed runtime is 85 mins pic.twitter.com/PbZSBX1Nua
— DomTheBomb (@DomTheBombYT) December 26, 2022
The plot
The Last of Us takes place twenty years after the fall of modern civilization, when a fungal parasite infects humans and turns them into monsters. Joel , a man hardened by the will to survive, is hired to escort 14-year-old Ellie out of an oppressive quarantine zone. It should be an easy job, but it soon becomes a dangerous and brutal journey: together, Joel and Ellie will have to cross what is left of the United States and rely on each other to escape death.
The cast
Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey will play Joel and Ellie . Gabriel Luna will play Tommy , brother of Joel . Merle Dandridge will play Marlene , as he has already done in the video game. Nico Parker will play Joel ‘s daughter Sarah . Also starring Jeffrey Pierce ( Perry ), Murray Bartlett ( Frank ), Lamar Johnson ( Henry ), Nick Offerman ( Bill), Anna Torv ( Tess ), Storm Reid ( Riley ). Natasha Mumba will be Kim Tembo , an original character.
The authors of the series
The series is created by Craig Mazin , creator of Chernobyl and screenwriter of various Hollywood comedies ( Superhero Movie, I am you, Scary Movie 3 and 4 , the sequels of The Hangover ). Mazin will write and produce The Last of Us with Neil Druckman , creator of the video game. The pilot episode will be directed by Kantemir Balagov , a filmmaker native of the Autonomous Republic of Kabardino-Balkaria, winner of the FIPRESCI award in Cannes for his debut film, Closeness .
Directing
Among the directors there will be Jasmila Žbanić ( Esma’s secret, The path ), Ali Abbasi ( Shelley, Border ), Peter Hoar ( Daredevil ) and Neil Druckman himself , creator of the game. The pilot was directed by Kantemir Balagov ( Tesnota, The Autumn Girl ).