Get a behind-the-scenes look at “The Last of Us” on HBO | Movie Zen

Two videos have been released about “The Last of Us,” the long-awaited film adaptation of Naughty Dog’s best-selling game of the same name.

The first clip invites us onto the set as HBO gives us a behind-the-scenes look at the production of the series, showing new footage from Joel and Ellie’s perilous journey. The video also features commentary from the creators and cast discussing the characters Joel from Pedro Pascal and Ellie Bella Ramsey, as well as the entire process of bringing the popular video game to life.

Bella Ramsey, who plays a young survivor named Ellie, reveals that she was advised not to play the game, so as not to affect how her character is portrayed. Advice you didn’t follow and watched some of the game videos anyway. She says she did it “in secret”, though it’s not a secret anymore. Fittingly done by Bella Ramsey, as Ellie in the game is a rebellious teen.

Obviously, “Last of Us” is going to be a massive series, which with its huge budget seems to have spent its finances well. It promised stunning post-apocalyptic vistas and lifelike mushroom zombies, and that the series delivered the games “fair and then some”.

The video also talks about how most zombie stories involve some kind of virus or bacteria, but in “The Last of Us” the zombie outbreak is caused by fungal spores. Producer Craig Mazin says that this fungus is called true cordyceps, and it attacks small insects in hot and humid places, like the bush.

When the spores of a parasitic fungus infect an insect, they are forced to climb to a high point, where the insect dies, and the fungus grows outside the insect’s body and spreads more spores. Although the fungus cannot affect humans, Craig Mazin says that if it did, an outbreak similar to what happened in “The Last of Us” would likely occur.

Clever changes were made to adapt the game to the series, says Craig Mazin, and the series is not intended to be an exact copy of the game.

When adapting something like a video game, changes need to be made in an intelligent way. We tell you more, there is a lot between these two. It will be beautiful, terrifying, but ultimately useful, says Craig Mazin.

Take a look at the clip below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a7L8AGYAjrE

In the second video, we hear series creators Neil Druckmann and Craig Mazin talk about how they avoided the pitfalls that plagued previous game-to-series adaptations, and how they sliced ​​the game up and expanded everything bit by bit to create a unique finale. result.

Craig Mazin says in the nearly 3-minute clip that he’s glad he got “Last of Us” to work with, as it’s the game with the best story ever created, in his opinion. But Craig Mazin has a simple solution for turning your entire game into a series, and the answer is to love your product and get to know it well.

Neil Druckmann mentions in the video that he, of course, loves the game, but realized that some elements had to be changed to make it work smoothly from the game version to the series version. He gives as an example long action sequences, which are fast paced and engaging in a game, but quickly become tiring to watch for too long if they happen in a TV series.

See more in the clip below.

The Last of Us series will pick up the events of the first game with the potential for additional content based on the sequel. The series is led by Pedro Pascal as Joel and Bella Ramsey as Ellie, both famous from “Game of Thrones.”

The Last of Us will be released January 16th on HBO.

Will you watch “The Last of Us”?