The highly anticipated TV adaptation of Naughty Dog’s hit The last of us is finally on its way, and HBO Max has released a stunning teaser worth watching the beloved game. The captivatingly eerie trailer has both complete newcomers and those who’ve played the action-adventure classic waiting with bated breath.
Originally released for the PlayStation 3 in 2013, The last of us follows smuggler Joel (played by Troy Baker) as he guides a young woman named Ellie (Ashley Johnson) out of a quarantine zone and through a post-apocalyptic United States. Set in a dystopian 2023 where an outbreak of the Cordyceps brain infection (or CBI for short) is plaguing the human population, the game’s plot is reminiscent of typical zombie or doomsday scenarios, but at a significantly higher level. The depth and delicacy of the story and the visual language set it apart in a rather busy genre.
Neil Druckmann and Gustavo Santaolalla, who wrote and composed for the original game respectively, will return to work on the show in the same capacity. Craig Mazin joins Druckmann in the writer’s room while Kantemir Balagov directs the pilot. Pedro Pascal van The Mandalorian fame will shine as Joel, and Bella Ramsey will play Ellie.
Joel, Ellie and Apocalyptic America
The trailer immediately sets the tone for the series, with the first handful of shots in motion describing the desolation of this United States after the disaster. Signs declaring martial law and describing the symptoms of CBI can be seen, as well as images of townspeople painting over boarded-up windows. As many fans have noted, the song playing is “Alone and Forsaken” by Hank Williams, which not only perfectly complements the desolate and disturbing atmosphere of the teaser, but also features in both the original game and the remaster. of it. during a cutscene set in Pittsburgh.
The first rendering of Pascal as Joel shows him looking completely distraught. The despair on his face is evident despite the fact that he holds his hand over his mouth. The viewer is then introduced to Ramsey’s Ellie, who looks curiously at a wall with the words “When you’re lost in the dark”, a face those who played the game will find familiar. The camera then turns to a clearly symbolic chain on her foot before moving on to an intense but brief glimpse of her partially obscured face.
Fireflies and Infected
The trailer begins to hint at the plot more than just setting the mood. Joel and Ellie hide in a tunnel with Tess, Joel’s smuggling partner (played by Anna Torv), while a sentry keeps watch outside. The images are starting to come thick and fast here, with images of a storm over a city in ruins, a shadow figure watching surveillance video in a dark room, and the incredibly macabre sight of tiny skeletons still dressed in children’s clothes all taking turns. take only a few seconds on the screen.
The first apparent appearance of an infected arrives around 35 seconds. Joel, Tess and Ellie stand in front of a room where an infected person is having convulsions. Ellie is clearly shaken and Joel, recognizing the danger of the moment, only raises a finger to his lips to try to keep Ellie still.
Interestingly, the next two shots show the presence of a few characters fans will love to see: Marlene, the leader of the Fireflies rebel militia, played by Merle Dandridge in a reprise of her role in the games, and Riley Abel, a orphan girl who serves as Ellie’s friend and occasional love interest, who will be played by Storm Reid.
“Save Whom You Can Save”
The only dialogue in the trailer comes in about 55 seconds and takes place in a flurry of intense footage, with Tess telling Joel the importance of helping Ellie survive: “This is your chance…our best chance. You hold keep her alive, and you’ll fix everything. Save whomever you can.” As the voiceover plays, the viewer gets to see a few more key characters in Nick Offerman’s accounta survivalist who owes Joel a favor, and what resembles Gabriel Luna as Tommy, a former soldier, and Joel’s even more optimistic younger brother.
Scenes of fistfights, a car chase, explosions, a raging fire and more quickly flash across the screen, ending only with the harrowing image of a clicker, a particularly terrifying variety of infected that uses echolocation to get around. Ellie and Joel are then seen riding a horse in a rare moment of calm before the series title card appears and the trailer ends.
The teaser does a phenomenal job of portraying the overt suspense and terrifying visuals of the plot, providing clever and subtle hints to fans of the game while drawing the uninitiated. If the show performs at the same level as this trailer, The last of us will be a must-watch for any HBO Max subscriber.