In 2023 is packed with great TV shows to watch, and another of the most anticipated is the HBO post-apokalyptic series, The Last of Us. The series is based on the same name-named 2013 Naughty Dog action-adventure game. The series will be HBO’s first to go on a video game. But the popular game originally meant to be a movie directed by Sam Raimi, but that never happened to the film.
The game was supposed to be a feature film after Screen Gems successfully adopted the rights to transform it into a cinema in 2014. Druckmann should write a script for the film, and Sam Raimi would be the director, who was best known for the Spider-Man trilogy. Also, rumors turned out that Bruce Campbell and Maisie Williams were able to play Joel and Ellie respectively. In an interview recently by the New York Times, Druckmann explained his mistrust against the studio executives was the primary reason for the project never being put off; their vision of the film was to become larger and more sexy, which would make it “a specific kind of movie.” The company wanted to make the movie resemble the 2007 film, Ying Men. But the studio wanted to make it a movie like World War Z.
The game became known as one of the greatest video games ever, and Druckmann felt that it was necessary to add the audience to who would never play it, and then on, as one of the most successful, this game would only work out.
If a real great adaptation is going to be enough to get to that other audience who likes storytelling and hasnt realized it was amazing to watch games.
The Last of Us has been released as a best-selling video game by sales of over 3,3 million units in its first week and 17 million in April 2018.
After Druckmann and studio executives reached a terrible final, the project ended up falling into development, eventually forcing Screen Gems to dump it. Luckily, Druckmann learned from Carter Swan that Craig Mazin, a Chernobyl based man, was interested in the game. With the expansion of Sony’s I.P., Carter had previously clashed with Druckmann, and Craig Mazin, who wanted to adapt the game to a movie, turned him into a perfect partner for Druckmann. Druckmann expressed his desire to meet Craig in the words of “the remark.”
Wait, Y’all. Why cant I meet her?
In one of the simplest terms, Druckmann and Craig worked together in a series titled “The best, most authentic game adaptation”. Craig, however, approached the project with caution, stating that that isn’t a very high bar. He chose the game as a “best story” to adapt to cinema, giving him the chance to do better than other adaptations.
I cheatedI only reacted to the best story. You, I love murderer. But when they announced they were going to make it as a film, I was like, I didn’t know how to do that. The game is a joy. The story’s impossible to tell.
Druckmann has also expressed that discretion was necessary when adjusting game titles, saying “[directors] think people want to see the game onscreen.” That’s clearly illustrated, since the Doom videogames were adapted into the 2005 film “Doom: Karl Urban, Rosamund Pike, and Dwayne Johnson.” Craig and Druckmann agreed on this, so they stressed that some games don’t need a change.
Doom is also a good example of something you can’t actually adapt. There’s nothing you can’t get used to in the past.
Pedro Pascal is going to portray Joel, and Bella Ramsey will portray Ellie.
While it’s been a long time to see a live-action adaptation of the popular game, fans will be grateful for the fact that the makers of the project have no compromises. The series’s going to appear on HBO on January 15, 2023.