Even before the story of Joel and Ellie conquered HBO, Sony and Naughty Dog tried to turn The Last of Us into a feature-length film. But viewers never got to see the post-apocalyptic box office hit. How did this happen?
A bad script and a loss of essence
In 2014, Sony brought in Sam Raimi (Spider-Man) and screenwriter Neil Drucker (Uncharted). But the adaptation went wrong from the start. Drucker later admitted that he couldn’t fit 15 hours of plot into a two-hour film without casualties. One version of the script even included a cameo by Nathan Drake — fans would have definitely rebelled.
Studio vs. creators
The main problem was the conflict of visions. Sony demanded a spectacular blockbuster with crowds of infected — something like The Walking Dead on the big screen. But Neil Druckmann, Naughty Dog's creative director, insisted on an intimate story about humans, not zombies. He eventually left the project and, years later, realized his idea with HBO.
Why did the series work?
The series format was perfect. Ten episodes allowed to preserve all the key moments of the game without sacrificing the depth of the characters. Druckmann, who became the showrunner, finally had full control. And the actors he chose for the main roles, Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsay, turned out to be so organic in their roles that it is now difficult to imagine other actors.
A lesson for Hollywood
As Druckmann himself hinted in an interview, the film would have definitely killed the soul of the original The Last of Us. Another example of the fact that games should only be adapted for the screen with those who understand their essence. Sony wasted ten years, and HBO got it right on the first try. Bravo!
