THE LAST OF US Creator Says Series Will Be ‘The Best, Most Authentic Game Adaptation’

The Last of Us creator, co-writer and producer of the upcoming HBO series adaptation, Neil Druckmanhe’s creating a huge buzz for the show, and in his most recent interview with the New Yorker, he says his critically acclaimed game adaptation will be “the best and most authentic game adaptation” yet.

I just want it to be true. All of the footage that has been released thus far teases a high-impact show and I think it might actually deliver the goods! When she shared her thoughts on the series, she said:

“I think that’s going to change things. Sometimes the adaptations haven’t worked because the source material isn’t strong enough. Sometimes they haven’t worked because the people making it don’t understand the source material.”

Druckmann and screenwriter Craig Mazin (Chernobyl) are approaching the game differently but making an effort to respect the source material. Mazin explained: “I love the ability to wander, to do nothing, in Skyrim. [But] which is not translatable! The Last of Us has always been a story where the story comes first.

Bruckmann went on to confidently say this will put to rest the “curse of video games” and believes the show “will be the best and most authentic adaptation of gaming.” Mazin responded amusingly that “it’s not the highest level in the world.” He added:

“I cheated – I just got the one with the best story. Like, I love Assassin’s Creed. But when they announced they were going to make it into a movie, I was like, I don’t know how! Because the joy of it is the gameplay. The story is impenetrable.”

Druckmann went on to explain that one of the other things people get wrong when adapting a game is that they “think people want to see the gameplay on screen.” She went on to talk about the flow of the series and allowing the audience to connect with the main characters:

“We need a certain amount of action, or violence, that we could use for mechanics so that you can connect with Joel and go into a state of flux. So you would really feel like you are connected with this avatar on screen and see the world through his eyes.

He has also previously talked about scaling back the violence for the series and explained:

“One of the things I enjoyed hearing about [Mazin] and HBO very early on was, “Let’s cut out all but essential violence.” This allowed the violence to have an even greater impact than the game, because when you keep showing the threat and you see people’s reaction to a threat, that makes it scarier.”

Peter Pascal stars in the series as Joel, and Bella Ramsey is taking on the role of Ellie in the upcoming video game adaptation. They are united by Gabriel Luna as Joel’s brother Tommy Anna Torv, Merle Dandrige, Nick Offerman, Storm Reid, Nico Parker, Gabriel Luna, Jeffery Pierceand Murray Barlett.

The Last of Us takes place 20 years after modern civilization has been destroyed by a deadly virus. Joel (Pascal), a hardened survivor, is hired to smuggle 14-year-old Ellie (Ramsey) out of an oppressive quarantine zone to the Fireflies, a cure-seeking organization. What starts as a small job soon becomes a brutal and harrowing journey as both must traverse the United States and depend on each other for survival.

Craig Mazinthe creator of the acclaimed HBO limited series Chernobylhe wrote The Last of Us and is also an executive producer with Neil Druckmanwho is the writer and creative director of the game.

The series will be released on HBO Max on January 15, 2023.