Skip to main content

Latest draft of The Last Of Us movie script is done and had a table read with actors

latest draft last us movie script done table read actors of joel and ellie
Image used with permission by copyright holder
It seems like a movie based on post-apocalyptic survival game The Last Of Us has been in the works ever since it was first released, and every week we’re inching closer to actually seeing it on the big screen. The latest update on the project comes from the film’s screenwriter, Neil Druckmann, who also directed the game.

In an interview with Game Informer, Druckmann confirmed that he’s finished a second draft of the script, and also revealed that there’s been a “table read” of the screenplay with actors.

Recommended Videos

Druckmann didn’t offer up any more details about the read-through of the script, but fans are likely wondering whether one particular actor was involved: Maisie Williams. The Game of Thrones actress has been rumored for the lead role in the project. Along with publicly confirming that talks are underway, she also had her name mentioned as a potential lead by Druckmann and producer Sam Raimi during a panel at 2014’s Comic-Con International in San Diego.

Released in 2013, The Last Of Us follows a pair of human survivors on a journey through the U.S. after it was ravaged by a deadly virus 20 years earlier. The duo includes a young, intelligent girl named Ellie (the role Williams is likely to play) and a battle-hardened survivor named Joel. Praised for its narrative structure and gameplay elements, The Last Of Us went on to win more awards than any game in the industry’s history.

According to Druckmann, the big-screen adaptation of The Last Of Us will stray from the game’s narrative at points, but will retain the same tonal elements and themes that made the source material so successful.

“[It’s] pretty faithful to the game,” he said. “There are some big changes, but the tone and what the story’s trying to say is pretty faithful to the game.”

There’s currently no director attached to the film and no release date set at this point.

Rick Marshall
A veteran journalist with more than two decades of experience covering local and national news, arts and entertainment, and…
The Last of Us lands 24 Emmy Award nominations
Bella Ramsey and Pedro Pascal as Ellie and Joel looking at the camera in HBO's "The Last of Us."

HBO has traditionally had a lot of success at the Emmy Awards, and this year's nominations suggest that the premium cable channel will have another big night this year. HBO's The Last of Us was second among all shows with 24 nominations including Best Drama. It was second only to HBO's Succession, which had 27 nominations. Succession and The Last of Us will face off against two other HBO series in the Best Drama category: House of the Dragon and The White Lotus. Yellowjackets, Better Call Saul, Andor, and The Crown round out the Best Drama nominees.

For Best Actor in a Drama, The Last of Us' Pedro Pascal will go up against Succession's Brian Cox, Kieran Culkin, and Jeremy Strong, Better Call Saul's Bob Odenkirk, and The Old Man's Jeff Bridges. The nominees for Best Actress in a Drama are Bella Ramsey for The Last of Us, Melanie Lynskey for Yellowjackets, Elisabeth Moss for The Handmaid's Tale, Keri Russell for The Diplomat, Sharon Horgan for Bad Sisters, and Sarah Snook from Succession.

Read more
These 5 TV shows could be the next The Last of Us
Kratos and Atreus standing next to each other on the cover of the game God Of War.

There used to be this belief in Hollywood that video game adaptions were cursed due to their lack of critical acclaim or porous box office results. Films and series considered failures to support the curse theory include Super Mario Bros., Doom, Prince of Persia: Sands of Time, Assassin's Creed, and House Of The Dead. However, the tide is changing in recent years as Sonic the Hedgehog, The Super Mario Bros. Movie, and Uncharted became huge hits. In television, the series that shattered the curse, proving video game adaptations should be taken more seriously, is The Last of Us. 

Based on the video game franchise of the same name, The Last of Us follows Joel (The Mandalorian's Pedro Pascal), a smuggler in a post-apocalyptic America tasked with transporting a teenage girl named Ellie (Game of Thrones' Bella Ramsey) across the country as a mass fungal infection ravages the human population. Critics hailed The Last of Us as the greatest video game adaption of all time. Additionally, The Last of Us accumulated the biggest viewership for HBO since Game of Thrones.

Read more
8 actors who could play Abby in The Last of Us season 2
Abby stands in the rain in The Last of Us Part 2.

It's been only a month since the show ended, and audiences are already clamoring for more. If you’re recovering from the finale of the premiere season of HBO’s The Last of Us, chances are that you’ve never played the epic video game the series is based on. Or, perhaps, you simply can’t wait to see the live-action realization of the sequel story. Undoubtedly, Pedro Pascal’s Joel Miller had to make an impossible choice. No matter which side of the fence you stand on with regard to the moral alignment of the situation, Joel has blood on his hands.

Like any gritty survival journey, blood often begets more blood. Abby, an imposing protagonist from The Last of Us Part II, will be an ominous harbinger of dark days yet to come. Though just like the ethical grey area Joel often finds himself in, Abby is just as conflicted. As far as survival in a post-apocalyptic landscape, Abby is absolutely built for it. Any actress up for the role must have a commanding presence, but ultimately be capable of peeling back the layers of Abby’s complex world.
Anya Taylor-Joy

Read more