HBO’s The Last of Us will further expand on Ellie and Marlene’s relationship in ways that could surprise fans.
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, creator and director Neil Druckmann explains how the show builds on the source material. "It doesn't get into the same kind of details as we do in the show, but there is a recording that you could find at the end of the game all the way in the hospital that she spells out some of her relationship with Ellie's origin," Druckmann said. HBO's version will further build on the pair's dynamic.
"I don't want to say more to spoil it, but because we don't have to adhere to one perspective - in this part of the game, you're playing as Joel in the quarantine zone, so everything you're seeing is through his eyes - we said, how can we introduce Ellie earlier?" Druckmann said. "That was an opportunity to start showing more of that relationship with Marlene, which then has a greater payoff later because we've established the relationship more explicitly here."
The Last of Us' Returning Actors
While Merle Dandridge is the only game actor to reprise her The Last of Us role in the series, many of the performers who voiced the characters in the source material will take on new parts in the live-action adaptation. Troy Baker and Ashley Johnson, who originally played Joel and Ellie, will feature as different characters as Game of Thrones stars Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey take over as the show's two leads. Gabriel Luna will take over for Jeffrey Pierce, who in the games played Joel's brother Tommy. However, Pierce will return as an original character named Perry.
Though The Last of Us retains much of what made the video game entertaining for fans, the series will also include some significant changes. While the original title is known for its brutal violence, HBO's version will take a different route. Druckmann recently confirmed that much of the game’s gore has been removed from the show except for the very essential parts. "That allowed the violence to have even more impact than in the game because when you hold on showing the threat, and you're seeing people's reaction to a threat, that makes it scarier," he said.
New episodes of The Last of Us air Sundays at 9:00 p.m. ET on HBO and stream on HBO Max.
Source: Entertainment Weekly