The Last of Us HBO Television Series Announced
- HBO is partnering with Naughty Dog to create The Last of Us television series
- Chernobyl creator, Craig Mazin, is teaming up with The Last of Us creative director Neil Dragman
While the 2020 video game release schedule is still relatively bare, the number of television and movie adaptations of video game franchises is exploding. For the longest time, the Resident Evil series was the lone success story in the video-game-to-big-screen adaptation. Until now. On Thursday, HBO announced a new partnership with iconic The Last of Us series.
Two Perfect Worlds Collide
Because of their interactivity, video games have always struggled to adapt to movie or television series. Anime series, such as Pokemon and Sonic, have adapted well; however, the live-action series has always struggled. Fans remember the horrible live-action Mario film, and since then few writers have tried to crossover video games into shows and films. Then came last year’s Netflix live-action adaptation of The Witcher on Netflix, which quickly became one of the most popular television shows of 2019. Since then, the number of announcements and collaborations between the video game and film industry has exploded. For example, we reported last week on the upcoming Monster Hunter movie, and other outlets are quickly joining the fray. Perhaps none is more anticipated than the HBO announcement on Thursday.
As first reported on Twitter, HBO is developing a television series adaptation of The Last of Us. What is even more exciting is the two individuals that HBO selected to direct the series. Chernobyl creator Craig Mazin and The Last of Us creative director Neil Druckmann are teaming up to write and produce the series. The Chernobyl television show quickly became one of the best series of all time, and The Last of Us is an iconic game, which sold over 17 million units. With the video game sequel releasing in a few months, the amount of hype and “free” advertising for the television show should be at an all time high.
Analysis
The marriage between HBO and Naughty Dog is a natural blend of two industry icons, but Mazin and Druckmann will have their work cut out for them. Whereas The Witcher could draw from extensive lore in the books and video games, the story of The Last of Us is exclusive to the video game genre. The challenge that this move presents is that HBO will need to remain true to the series while attempting to create episodic content. The balance between faithful to the games and expanding the universe is a fascinating struggle that we will continue to monitor.
Only time will tell if The Last of Us will succeed as a television show on HBO, but fans of the series should be ecstatic about the prospect of a live-action show. According to the Hollywood Reporter, if the series does well then new seasons based on the game’s sequel could be released.
Conclusion
But we want to know what you think. Are you excited about The Last of Us HBO television series? Do you think the series will become more popular than Netflix’s The Witcher? Let us know in the comments below or the social media links on the right. Also, be sure to check out our other news items on Pokemon, Modern Warfare, Capcom, Blizzard and more.
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