Pedro Pascal ‘created a healthy distance’ from The Last of Us game to prepare for the TV series

Pedro Pascal has revealed that he deliberately didn’t experience too much of The Last of Us game in case it affected his preparation for the upcoming TV adaptation.

The Mandalorian actor, who will play Joel in the small-screen adaptation of Naughty Dog‘s critically acclaimed game series, told GQ that he was wary of his performance turning into an imitation of the video game version of Joel, a character portrayed by Troy Baker.

Explaining that he didn’t have enough skill to play the game, Pascal said he watched his nephew playing it instead.

“I watched for as long as I was able to that day, and then I had to leave Florida,” he recalled. “I found Joel so impressive – I found the whole of it such a visually impressive experience. And then I got worried that I would want to imitate too much, which I think could be right in some circumstances, and then a mistake in others.

“So I just wanted to create a healthy distance, and for that to be more in the hands of Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann.”

Pascal also hinted that the show may not follow the exact plot of the game, saying: “There’s a very, very creative way of honouring what’s important and also preserving what is iconic to the experience of the video game, and also [to include] things that you wouldn’t necessarily expect.

“And then directions that you would expect it to go, and it might not… they’re doing some really smart things, is all I can say.”

HBO confirmed in February that The Last of Us TV show won’t be released this year.

Further reading

The Ghost of Tsushima movie has found its writer

Takashi Doscher will pen the screenplay for Sony’s film

The adaptation is the first television series from PlayStation Productions, a studio formed by Sony Interactive Entertainment to adapt its original game properties for film and TV.

Chernobyl creator Mazin is co-writing and executive producing the show alongside Naughty Dog co-president Druckmann.

PlayStation Productions’ first release was the Uncharted movie starring Tom Holland, and in February it was also confirmed that its Twisted Metal TV series has been picked up by NBC for its streaming platform Peacock.