HBO has given the green light to the series adaptation of the hit video game franchise “The Last of Us” from Neil Druckmann and “Chernobyl” creator Craig Mazin.
The series, set 20 years after the destruction of modern civilization, centers on Joel, a hardened survivor, who is hired to smuggle Ellie, a 14-year-old girl, out of an oppressive quarantine zone. Per HBO, “What starts as a small job soon becomes a brutal, heartbreaking journey, as they both must traverse across the U.S. and depend on each other for survival.”
Mazin and Druckmann, the writer and creative director of the Naughty Dog-produced game series, are co-writers and executive producers on the adaptation.
“Craig and Neil are visionaries in a league of their own,” Francesca Orsi, executive vice president of HBO programming, said. “With them at the helm alongside the incomparable Carolyn Strauss, this series is sure to resonate with both die-hard fans of ‘The Last of Us’ games and newcomers to this genre-defining saga. We’re delighted to partner with Naughty Dog, Word Games, Sony and PlayStation to adapt this epic, powerfully immersive story.”
“We’re thrilled to be working with HBO and this fantastic creative team to bring ‘The Last of Us’ series to life,” added Jeff Frost, President of Sony Pictures Television Studios and Asad Qizilbash, Head of PlayStation Productions. “PlayStation’s innovative storytelling and ingenuity is a natural complement to SPT’s creative focus. Our collaboration is a great example of our ‘One Sony’ philosophy at work. We look forward to developing even more iconic game IP in the future.”
In addition to Mazin and Druckmann, executive producers on the project include “Chernobyl” and “Game of Thrones” vet Carolyn Strauss, Naughty Dog’s Evan Wells and PlayStation Productions’ Asad Qizilbash and Carter Swan.