The Last of Us TV Show Casts Anna Torv as Tess

HBO’s The Last of US TV show has added Anna Torv (Fringe, Mindhunter) in a key role as Tess, the smuggler that worked with Joel in the initial The Last of Us video game from developer Naughty Dog. Torv joins previously revealed cast like Pedro Pascal as Joel and Bella Ramsey as Ellie.

According to Deadline, Torv will recur in the show as Tess, which means that it won’t be a simple instance of her briefly guesting on an episode. If you are not already familiar with the character, she plays an important role in getting Joel and Ellie together before departing under, shall we say, tragic circumstances. It’s unclear just how closely the show will hew to the title’s narrative given that Naughty Dog’s Neil Druckmann previously said that it will “deviate greatly.”

“Neil Druckmann is without question the finest storyteller working in the video game medium, and The Last of Us is his magnum opus,” said Craig Mazin, who developed the TV series with Druckmann, when the HBO series was first announced. “Getting a chance to adapt this breathtaking work of art has been a dream of mine for years, and I’m so honored to do it in partnership with Neil.”

It’s currently unclear when HBO’s The Last of Us adaptation might release. As noted above, Torv joins previously revealed cast like Pedro Pascal as Joel, Bella Ramsey as Ellie, Gabriel Luna as Tommy, and more. The show is developed and written by Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann, who will executive produce as well. Carolyn Strauss and Naughty Dog president Evan Wells will also executive produce, and The Last of Us show is a co-production between Sony Pictures Television and PlayStation Productions — which makes it the first television series for PlayStation Productions. The Last of Us Part II is now available for PlayStation 4. You can check out all of our previous coverage of the upcoming HBO adaptation right here.

What do you think of what we’ve heard about the upcoming HBO series? Are you excited to see Anna Torv join the cast? Let us know in the comments, or feel free to reach out and hit me up directly over on Twitter at @rollinbishop to talk all things gaming!