The Last Of Us trailer: Mushroom zombies, '80s music, and a gun-toting Nick Offerman
Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey star in a trailer that reveals that HBO's The Last Of Us is very much…The Last Of Us
Brazil’s CCXP22 continues to yield big nerd dividends this weekend, as HBO used the South American Comic-Con to debut the first full trailer today for its TV adaptation of critically acclaimed video game The Last Of Us.
And, yep, that sure is The Last Of Us! Fans of the series—about a hardened survivor named Joel (Pedro Pascal in the show) who has to transport a young girl named Ellie (Bella Ramsey) across a zombie-ravaged America—will recognize pretty much every frame of this thing, tracking moments from throughout the first game in the series. (Although the trailer’s big needle drop, A-ha’s “Take On Me,” is instead lifted from The Last Of Us Part II.)
The level of faithfulness on display here is actually so high, in fact, that it’s not clear who showrunner Craig Mazin is necessarily making this series for; maybe people who just want to see Nick Offerman play a paranoid survivalist type who’s not Ron Swanson? Ramsey and Pascal, at least, have clearly figured out how to fit these characters like a glove; the trailer’s lightest moment comes early, when Ellie—who’s immune to the destructive fungus that’s turned most of the rest of the planet into mushroom zombies—has fun freaking Joel out by pretending to turn. (And, yeah, that’s pretty par for the course for “light” in the Last Of Us universe.)
The trailer ends on a big monster reveal, showing off one of the brutal “Bloaters” who make up a few of the games’ rare boss encounters. We also get a look at Storm Reid as Ellie’s old friend Riley, assuring fans of the series that the show’s first season will also focus on the tragic backstory revealed in the first game’s downloadable content.
The Last Of Us debuts on HBO on January 15.