Here's Why The Last Of Us Won't Fall Into The Same Trap As Walking Dead ... Or Game Of Thrones
HBO is gearing up for the premiere of "The Last of Us," which is proving to be the most highly-anticipated video game adaptation to date. With a star-studded cast including Pedro Pascal, Bella Ramsey, Nick Offerman, and even the game's voice actors, "The Last of Us" looks to become HBO's biggest hit since "Game of Thrones."
"The Last of Us" takes audiences back to a place we are all too familiar with: a zombie-infested post-apocalyptic world. However, this time the infection arrived through fungi, spreading across the planet and mutating to create many different kinds of infected. The series follows Joel (Pascal) and Ellie (Ramsey), two survivors who meet under unlikely circumstances. Joel must escort Ellie across the United States in what HBO describes as "a brutal, heartbreaking journey" about survival.
Although the series will take audiences back into the world of the infected, "The Last of Us" does things differently than other mainstream zombie projects. Both video games put the characters' emotions front and center, proving it's possible to have a grounded, heartfelt story in an unrealistic video game world.
"The Last of Us" will inevitably garner comparisons to other notable TV shows, but the creators have reassured fans that the HBO series won't overstep its boundaries.
HBO's The Last of Us won't make the same mistakes as other popular shows
"The Last of Us" hit the ground running, with "Chernobyl" creator Craig Mazin and "The Last of Us" video game director Neil Druckmann creating the show for HBO Max. Fans of the games have complete faith in Druckmann to not mess up the transition to live-action, and his recent comments only reassure them.
During a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Druckmann and Mazin gave fans a look into their plans for "The Last of Us." Specifically, the creative duo has no plans to push past the video games' stories, hoping not to run into the same problem that "Game of Thrones" did. "We have no plans to tell any stories beyond adapting the games," he told the outlet. "We won't run into the same issue as 'Game of Thrones' since 'Part II' doesn't end on a cliffhanger." Druckmann and Mazin also confirmed that Season 1 will cover the entirety of "The Last of Us" while seemingly admitting that Season 2 would cover "The Last of Us Part II."
Although Mazin doesn't outright mention "The Walking Dead," his vision for "The Last of Us" seem to be the opposite of what AMC did with their zombie show, which went on for 11 seasons. "I don't have any interest in a spinning-plates-go-on-forever show," he told THR. "When it becomes a perpetual motion machine, it just can't help but get kind of ... stupid. Endings mean everything to me." He also stated he doesn't like filler, so expect the HBO series only to include episodes pushing the main story forward.
As for the show's future, a second season seems inevitable, but based on Druckmann and Mazin's comments, it looks like the series won't overstay its welcome.