The Last of Us Showrunner Speaks Out on Bringing Part 2 Storylines From the Game Into the Show

The showrunner of The Last of Us has talked about how the show was able to weave in some elements from The Last of Us Part II. If you somehow don't know, The Last of Us is faithfully based on a PlayStation video game series with the first season adapting the entirety of the first game. However, Naughty Dog released the first game in 2013 and then the two lead creatives went on to make Uncharted 4 for a handful of years. It wasn't until 2020 that Naughty Dog finally released The Last of Us Part II, but it seems safe to say that the studio didn't really have any concrete idea for where the sequel would go when making the first game.

That wasn't the case for the TV show, though. The TV show has the benefit of hindsight and knowing the full story thus far and is therefore able to plant seeds for things that will become more relevant in future seasons. During a recent episode of The Last of Us Podcast, showrunner Craig Mazin spoke about how it was able to plant seeds for Ellie's love of space (something that is depicted more clearly in the second game) and also include things like the introduction of Ellie's horse, Shimmer.

"When I first started working with Neil on this adaptation, it was before The Last of Us Part II came out," said Mazin. "It was the first time I'd gone to Naughty Dog, and he asked if I wanted to see a sequence from the second game, that touches on Ellie's fascination with being an astronaut and space travel, and it was this beautiful moment. I said we had this opportunity Neil didn't have on the first game. We know more now. It was a chance to show how Joel knew Ellie. She asks if he knows who her favorite astronaut is, and he knows. Instinctively he's already in her head and knows her, and she isn't shocked by this."  

Mazin went on to note that Ellie's game actress, Ashley Johnson, loves space and that was one of the reasons why they included that in the game. Similarly, Troy Baker, the actor for Joel in the game, is also a musician and is a key reason why Joel also has a love for music and tries to bestow that on Ellie in some way. As of right now, it remains to be seen if we'll get any bigger things that relate to The Last of Us Part II, but it would not be surprising.

Are you hoping to see anything that sets up future seasons in The Last of Us? Let me know in the comments or hit me up on Twitter @Cade_Onder.

[H/T Collider]