Why The Last Of Us could be TV’s best video-game adaptation yet
HBO has done everything to ensure The Last Of Us succeeds where other video-game movies and shows have failed
TV Features Last Of Us
The pace of video games coming to the small screen has increased in recent years, and some of them have even been, well, if not truly great, at least somewhat popular. The animated series Castlevania, based on the horror-themed adventure game of the same name, has had a notable four seasons on Netflix, a platform notorious for its tendency to cancel shows that aren’t massive hits right out of the gate. Netflix has also greenlit a second season of Arcane, based on the online strategy game League Of Legends. Last year’s live-action adaptation of Halo on Paramount+ was not only the streamer’s most-watched premiere ever, it was the most-watched show of 2022, beating out Sheridan-verse offerings like Yellowstone (although that show is currently only available to watch on Paramount+ outside the U.S.), 1883, and 1923. Imagine how much better Halo would have done if the producers hadn’t antagonized fans with their outspoken disregard for the game’s lore.
Which brings us to HBO’s highly anticipated video-game adaptation The Last Of Us. Taking the opposite of the Halo approach, the show promises to be very faithful to the game, only taking liberties when necessary to support the story as it was originally told. To ensure that, Neil Druckmann, who wrote the first game as well as an expansion pack and a sequel, is heavily involved as a writer and co-showrunner. HBO is showing every sign of confidence in the project, scheduling it in the prestigious Sunday night slot and marketing the hell out of it. Overall, Hollywood doesn’t have a great track record of video-game adaptations that please both fans and critics, but this show may be the rare exception (granted, it’s not a very high bar). We’ll know for sure when it premieres on January 15, but we already have reasons to believe it’s going to live up to the hype.
A game ready-made for prime time
The Last Of Us, which originally came out in 2013 and has had several re-releases since then, has become legendary among gamers not for the sophistication of its gameplay (which is fairly standard for an action-adventure shoot-em-up) but for the depth of its world-building and storytelling. This is where a lot of video-game movies go wrong, by shoe-horning in a totally new story, or by altering what exists beyond recognition. As storytelling mediums go, video games and filmed entertainment each require something different from their audiences. The Last Of Us straddles the line between the two, alternating between interactive and passive elements.
A good chunk of the game is devoted to cutscenes, which take the characters from one point to the next without the player’s influence. It’s easy to get caught up watching these scenes and forget you’re playing a game at all. The transitions can be so seamless it’s not always immediately clear when you’re back in control, and even then it tends to push you forward in one direction without any other alternatives. The Last Of Us has an expansive world, but it’s not an open one. This makes the task of bringing it to the screen that much easier. A lot of the physical and narrative design work has been done already. While there are some gaps that could be filled in here and there, the game already has a framework in place to give the show’s creative team a starting point. It’s even neatly broken up into chapters, making for clearly defined episode breaks.
Taking the time to tell the story right
Similar to the way book adaptations naturally lend themselves to the TV format, The Last Of Us couldn’t have been truly faithful to the game if it were made as a movie. By most estimates, it takes about 15 hours to complete the game from start to finish. Of course, that accounts for the time you have to spend fighting, crafting, looting, or solving puzzles (mostly navigational in nature, like searching for a ladder to climb or placing a plank in the right spot to cross a rooftop), but it still leaves a lot of plot left to cram into a feature-length movie.
Despite all that, there actually was a film adaptation in development at Sony in 2014, with Sam Raimi at the helm. The project ultimately fell apart, though, which probably underscored the need for a more understated approach. Druckmann has said that the notes he got from the studio were mainly along the lines of “make it bigger.” It takes more than two or three hours to properly tell the entire story, and a series gives the narrative a chance to spread out and breathe the way it’s supposed to, over the course of nine contemplative episodes.
One creator’s vision, and a visionary creator
As we mentioned before, having the writer of The Last Of Us on board as a showrunner is going to be key in getting this adaptation right. No one knows this world better than Druckmann, and if there are things to expand upon for the series, he’s the best one to ensure that any new material fits with what’s already there. Based on the casting and reports from the set in Alberta, Canada, it seems like some of the story from the game’s first expansion, The Last Of Us: Left Behind, will be incorporated into the first season. It provided a book-ended story that takes place before and after the events in the game. Who better to weave in the additional backstory elements than the guy who wrote them?
Druckmann has never run a show before, but he’ll have help on this one from co-executive producer Craig Mazin. Mazin is no stranger to prestigious HBO projects, having previously written and produced the award-winning limited series Chernobyl. With that show, Mazin demonstrated an ability to break down the intricacies of nuclear physics so that anyone could understand them. That makes him a pretty good choice for a series about a zombie plague brought about by a quirk of evolution in a specific species of fungus.
While Mazin and Druckmann each bring something different to the table, they both seem to be interested in the duality of science—with all its wonders and horrors—and in drilling down to the ground level in order to examine its impact on ordinary people.
A carefully calibrated cast
Like the game, this show hinges on the strength of its two lead characters, Joel and Ellie. Joel is a hardened survivor who finds his heart somewhat less hardened when he takes a job escorting 14-year-old Ellie to safety through a post-apocalyptic, zombie-infested landscape. Part of the fun of the game is traveling with them on their journey and watching their surrogate father-daughter relationship grow along the way.
When fans of the game heard that Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey would be playing the leads, reactions were mixed (some were even upset that Pascal couldn’t grow a beard like Joel in the game). What the detractors missed in that initial assessment was that physical resemblance is far less important (and they’re not that far off anyway) than accurately replicating the chemistry between the characters. If Pascal and Ramsey can pull that off—and judging by their interactions in press interviews, they’re certainly capable—everything else falls into place.
The inspired casting choices don’t end there, though. Rounding out the cast are Nick Offerman (Bill), Murray Bartlett (Frank), Anna Torv (Tess), Gabriel Luna (Tommy), and Melanie Lynskey (as a new character named Katherine). They even brought in the original voice actors, Ashley Johnson and Troy Baker, in small roles as a treat for game fans.
From “start” to “game over”—and everything in between
Unlike a certain other zombie show we could name (and you probably could too), the inspiration for The Last Of Us is a complete story with a fully realized narrative arc. The first season will reportedly cover the entirety of the first game, plus some of the events in Left Behind. That’s a much cleaner inspiration than, say, an ongoing comic series with nearly 200 issues to turn to for source material. If the series gets a second season there’s The Last Of Us Part II to borrow from, but the creators haven’t expressed any interest in carrying on beyond that. Whatever happens in the future, we know that this first season already has a reliable road map, and as any gamer knows, that can be a very handy tool.
66 Comments
nah no way it can beat the Sonic Saturday morning cartoon aka SATAM
A post-apocalyptic survivalist Murray Bartlett does sound fun.
Finally, reviews seems to be quite solid for this one really good to see that happening
Counterpoint: The Last of Us was already basically an interactive film, versus being a video game first and foremost (Sony seems to focus on those with their first party games, from Naughty Dog’s recent output to the God of War reboot). If you just cut the gameplay segments and create one of those “video game movies” on Youtube, you’re getting most of the impact right there, and an adaptation is pretty pointless outside of getting people who will never play a game engaged with the IP (which, to be fair, is a decent-enough reason to justify an adaptation, but it’s also not really ever going to offer the chance for a transformative adaptation, either.)
Exactly this. I’m not mad its being made, and nothing in the article is wrong, but the whole thing seems completely unnecessary. Like a videogame adaptation of the Godfather.
Unnecessary, that is, to a gamer. those of us who have actually TRIED being gamers and just find gaming not up their alley *raises hand*, despite appreciation beyond belief for the craft, just wanna watch a damn TV show that rocks.
I said essentially the same over at the Gizmodo/io9 review of this. The game is written like a TV serial, but seems there’s at least a few fans of the game that are looking forward to it. Hey, I’ll watch it too if it’s such well crafted entertainment.
Surely you must realize that there are far more than ‘at least a few’ fans of the game looking forward to this show..
Yeah, the OP made it sound like there were none.
I’ll speak for the non-gamers out there; the announcement of this show was the first I’ve heard of The Last of Us and the casting of Pascal piqued my interest. I think he’s one of the most interesting guys working today. So I don’t really care if the source material is a game, book or graphic novel as long as it tells a compelling story. I’d venture there are more people like me than ones who have played the game, or are even aware of it.
I mean, the first one sold over 20 million copies. Maybe there are more than 20 million people who haven’t heard of the game but are hyped about the show? It’s certainly possible, but I don’t know that I’d be confident about it.
Foreign language films get remakes for people who want to watch in their own language. There will be plenty of people who will watch this rather than the games.
Nah, it’s a video game. So why don’t you make a video of the cinematic parts and upload it to YouTube and get millions of hits? The game is cinematic. It’s not the same as a live action show. If you’re mad about it, just don’t watch.
You think people haven’t already done that?
I’m sure they have. I was being sarcastic to the OP who is complaining about a tv show being made.
Nope, it’s the combo of gameplay and scripted scenes that made it work and immersed you in the whole experience differently than with a show or movie. Which is why the show will do some things differently, to account for the lack of direct engagement.
People who will never play the game being roughly 5,000,000,000. Yeah, there’s a market for it.
I agree that many people that played the game will likely not need this show at all. But I actually somewhat disagree with your thesis. First off, nobody who isn’t a gamer would sit down and watch a couple hours of cut scenes. But more importantly, I inherently disagree that this particular game is truly about the cut scenes. Yes, they’re fantastic and some of the best in game history (in my opinion). But I’ve always considered the true magic of the game, and what truly makes the Joel/Ellie relationship work – a relationship that could feel quite pat in the cut scenes alone – is the exceptional writing that is woven through the gameplay itself. I’ve never found myself so drawn into characters, for who they are, while literally playing a game as I was with TLOU. And that added time, the slow breaking of the ice, the very carefully paced growth of their relationship would be obliterated by simply watching cut scenes.
I understand this point of view from those who have played the game, but as a person who has not (mostly because I’m just at that point in my life with career and family where committing 15 hours to a video game is hard – not that I don’t want to). I’ve heard so many good things about the story of the game that I do have an interest in playing it at some point. But an hour of a show like this each week is definitely a format I could get into – not to mention SHARE with my wife, and maybe my kids (we’ll see, they’re middle/high school age and like stuff like this, but I’ll probably vet an episode or two first). In any case, for now, this is how people like me (and obviously those who never heard of the game but like the genre) can access a well-loved story. And who knows, maybe it motivates me to actually play the game eventually. But yeah, if you’ve played the game and this is a very “faithful” adaptation, I imagine it seems pointless. Maybe in a weird way it’s not meant for you?
I don’t play video games, but I love watching cutscene movies. Telltale’s Walking Dead was incredible (Gamer’s Little Playground has some good movies), and possibly better than the series in its heyday. Wolf Among us is awesome, too. I’m not a comic reader, but I went and downloaded the Fables series. The only other comic I ever read was Walking Dead, and that was when the show came out.
Looking forward to this. I do have a great idea for a Dishonored TV series that I think would be really special but I have no money or connections so that won’t get made lol
It be that way. I’m convinced I know how a Dark Souls show could work, but I’ll never be in a position to enact it.
You know that episode of the Twin Peaks revival where the vast majority of the episode had no spoken dialogue and the message was conveyed through symbolism? That’s what a series based on Dark Souls would be. Complete with condescending fanbase going “I’m sorry you’re obviously too stupid to understand the message”.
I really need to get to Twin Peaks at some point.Your comment though reminds me of this short:
I maintain that season 1 and the first half of season 2 is some of the best TV ever made.
True Lynch fans know the real message is “there is no message, Lynch movies/shows are not about something, instead they are one man’s fascinating ongoing quest to accurately capture on film how it feels to be in a dream.”
That particular episode of the 2017 Twin Peaks is in my personal top 10 of greatest TV episodes ever.
Dishonored could be so great on film. I hope someone with those connections and money is thinking about that.
Better than DOA: Dead or Alive? I refuse to believe that.
Takeshi Miike’s Dead or Alive (no relation to the video game) has the greatest start and end to any movie ever made.
Yeah, this series has no chance unless they add evil fighting sunglasses that let you take over the world.
And like, how jiggly is The Last of Us going to be? Because the trailers suggest the answer is not very. And that’s where DOA: Dead or Alive really shines.
The only reason this is gonna work is because of the characters and storylines Naughty Dog excel at creating. Most video games are held together with a threadbare story and basic characterisations. ND are the best in the industry now at creating a compelling story and truly believable characters with dialogue that isn’t just there to push the story forward.
I remember playing Uncharted 4 and actually forgetting i was playing a videogame during one of the longer cutscenes.
“I forgot I was playing a videogame” is probably the worst endorsement for a videogame I’ve ever heard.
Why?
Maybe to you.
But its the quality of the writing and the way they get the models to express feeling that makes some of the cutscenes seem like you’re watching an animated movie for a while.
Not sure what the argument you’re making here is. This isn’t an uncommon aphorism in relation to various experiences, not just video games. From a different angle, you literally aren’t playing the game during cutscenes, that in and of itself isn’t an argument against the game as a whole. Not really sure what you’re getting at.
“The only reason this is gonna work is because of the characters and storylines Naughty Dog excel at creating.”Yes, that’s usually the reason shows end up working – because they have good characters and storylines.
Naughty Dog’s writing is incredible by video game standards, but it still doesn’t solve the inherent issue video games face, that of “the story doesn’t really match the gameplay”. The famous example of course being that Nathan Drake is a likeable, quippy treasure hunter who also happens to be a mass murderer of biblical proportions.To a slightly lesser extent, the same goes for Joel and Ellie in Last of Us. I think making a TV show could solve that problem from a storytelling perspective.
Yeah Nate Drake is hiding a tortured soul behind all those wisecracks, he’s got a death count in the thousands.
Joel and co at least have an excuse in that its basic survival in the world they live in.
I wasn’t as high on Uncharted 4 as others, but the cutscenes were incredibly engaging and it nearly brought a tear to my eye because I can’t believe how far games have come. That said, I still say Rockstar is the best in the industry at storytelling. Red Dead 2 was next level. They can do the characters, narratives, and production values just as well as ND, but with gameplay that’s alot more substantial to go with it
“The Last Of Us: Left Behind, will be incorporated into the first season. It provided a book-ended story that takes place before and after the events in the game.”LB takes place before and *during* the events of the game – between the FALL and WINTER seasons. It doesn’t contain anything that happens after the end of the game.
keep up the good fight
To be fair, that’s a pretty low bar. Especially for a series based on a game that is essentially already a cinematic experience.
Is the actress playing Joel’s daughter is mixed-race or black? I’m sure the people who are upset about Joel’s beard are gonna love that (hope they die mad!).
I really dig Pedro Pascal’s “And ah-whay we go!” pose in the header image.
They couldn´t have chosen a more bland and boring actor playing Ellie.
Aww, really? I think she’s fantastic! Got a great energy, sense of humor, and looks like a realistic kid.
Yeah. I personally think there would have been way better choices for the role of Ellie.
Yeah, Bella Ramsey is great, a good choice for the role.
Except that that actor isn´t all that.
Short version:Why The Last Of Us could be TV’s best video-game adaptation yetBecause it’s not a high bar to clear.
I like how they chose people who look like regular Heartland Americans. Hollywood is too beautified these days.
And like all the best all-American characters on screen, she’s a British actress.
“Imagine how much better Halo would have done if the producers hadn’t antagonized fans with their outspoken disregard for the game’s lore.”Or, you know, what actually happened: Variety quote-mining the producer for a bullshit clickbait headline.
When did they give Joel a lightsaber?
and some of them have even been, well, if not truly greatI don’t know, I thought Arcane was (to my admitted surprise) pretty damn great. I happened to be stuck inside on a snowy day looking for something to watch and the animation style caught my eye so I thought I’d give it a shot. Had zero expectations but ended up binging the entire series in one go.
Sorry Y´all, but it won´t be with a bland and boring Ellie actor like that. There were so many way better options for that role and they chose THAT? Sorry, but nope.
Getting kind of curious at this point how many of your “bland and boring” assessments I’m going to run into throughout the course of these comments.
Ellie is bland and boring in Part 2. They were probably just planning ahead.
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I love the shot of Druckmann on set with the guy in the clicker makeup just lurking over his shoulder XD
So far that Netflix Castlevania cartoon is the only good show based on a video game I’ve seen. Probably helps that what little story there is in the series is very bare bones leaving it open to interpretation. Also they borrowed a lot from Castlevania 3 which is one of the best games in the franchise.
Unless it too will have a theme song by Imagine Dragons, there’s no topping Arcane
Because the media says so. Like everything else.
Whither Captain N: The Game Master?