Sony PlayStation apocalyptic parable The Last of Us is among the most critically acclaimed video game franchises of all time. Both installments of Naughty Dog’s games received countless game of the year awards and have inspired millions of words of often extremely heated debate. Now HBO is hoping to match this success with its TV adaptation, which has been filming in Canada since July 2021.
Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey are playing protagonists Joel and Ellie, and a new leaked shot from the set indicates that their outfits have been directly taken from the game:
This shot also shows off characters Henry and Sam, who play a key role in one of the first game’s most affecting chapters, with their father and son team a neat reflection of Joel and Ellie’s own relationship. Their presence is further proof that the show will indeed stick closely to the game’s plot, which plays out over the course of a year as Joel and Ellie travel across the ruined USA.
The sheer length of the shoot is a great indication of how confident HBO is in the show. This will be their most expensive production to date and has seen many locations across Canada given a grungy makeover to best realize the game’s world. The shoot isn’t scheduled to end until June 8 and it’s likely some reshoots will still take place even after the production wraps up.
Fingers crossed all this effort is worth the wait. We don’t have an exact release date for The Last of Us yet other than the tentative debut date scheduled to be sometime in 2023. Let’s hope it’s sooner rather than later.