Summary
- The Last of Us Season 2 will have a darker tone with new characters like Abby and Gail.
- The new trailer showcases intense themes like airborne spores and a war between humans and infected.
- Action sequences in Season 2 draw inspiration from Game of Thrones to highlight the world’s dangers.
The Last of Us Season 2 is primed to launch in only a few weeks, and the wait for its return has fans even more excited due to how successful the post-apocalyptic show’s first season was. Not only will viewers get a very different darker vibe this time around, as opposed to its somewhat lighter moments in Season 1, but HBO will also be rolling out the red carpet for a host of new faces. Viewers will get to meet Abby Anderson, Dina, and Gail, played by Schitt’s Creek star Catherine O’Hara, who is a therapist living in Jackson and confirmed to be Eugene’s wife, who are some of the new cast members being welcomed to The Last of Us series.
HBO recently released a new trailer for The Last of Us Season 2, which clearly illustrated its darker themes and heart-pounding moments from the Naughty Dog sequel. Not only will airborne spores now plague the show’s already traumatized characters, but it seems as though a huge war will unfold between humans and the infected. Game of Thrones was another massively popular show in which its battles played a central part of its narrative, especially in one episode between the Army of the Dead and the Free Folk. Similarities to this battle can be seen in The Last of Us Season 2’s trailer, where a horde of infected can be seen rushing into Jackson as its townsfolk try to keep them at bay.
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The Last of Us Co-Creator Compares Season 2’s Action Sequence to Game of Thrones’ Hardhome Battle
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, showrunner Craig Mazin was posed with the question about whether any inspiration was taken from Game of Thrones’ battle sequences when developing The Last of Us Season 2‘s incredible looking Jackson show-down with the infected. Mazin revealed that he is indeed a big GoT fan and particularly loved how HBO crafted “Hardhome”, the eighth episode of the fifth season. “Certainly as a Thrones fanatic, I remember from watching “Hardhome” and not thinking about how complicated and impressive the action was”. Mazin goes on to say that the epic battle between the Army of the Dead and the Free Folk really connected the narrative, which served an important purpose for the show, likening it to Season 2’s Jackson’s action sequence.
“What I remembered was how moving and important the things that were happening inside the action were. That Wildling woman [Karsi], seeing her get turned, and seeing The Night King raise the dead and being like, “Hey, you and me, Jon Snow, we’re on a collision course, my friend, and the more you fight me, the worse it gets for you.” The desperation, the total loss.”
Mazin goes on to express that for The Last of Us Season 2’s action sequences, they “were very ambitious” in terms of showcasing how much worse the world would actually become for the residents of Jackson. He goes on further to explain that they didn’t just throw in a battle for the sake of it, there is a purpose – like in Game of Thrones‘ Hardhome episode – and that was to hit home to the people of Jackson that they weren’t safe, as many of its townspeople had let their guards down far too much over the years, so this was a way of bringing them back into their reality with a very big bump.
“That is really our philosophy about action. What’s the point? So in building this sequence, we were very ambitious because we just wanted to show how bad it could get. But always the question was: Why? What is this about, what does this change, and what does this mean for our people moving forward? Jackson is, as we see in episode one, growing, it’s expanding. There is a certain cockiness. They don’t seem particularly worried about the trouble outside. They’ve gotten a little complacent. They have a New Year’s Eve dance. They’re going to therapy,. They’re refurbishing homes. They’ve got patrols down to a science. On the other hand, you’re like: Guys don’t you know you’re living in a TV show?”
The Battle of Hardhome may not have been the biggest battle featured in Game of Thrones’ eight seasons, but it was incredibly impressive and vitally important for the rest of the show’s narrative, especially regarding the Night King and the power he held. If Season 2 of The Last of Us can successfully develop even something half of what Hardhome did, then the Jackson battle could go down as one of the best action sequences in TV history.
The Last of Us season two will premiere on April 13 on HBO Max.
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In a recent press conference, The Last of Us Season 2’s creator Neil Druckmann expressed his excitement for the second season’s launch.
The Last Of Us
- Release Date
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January 15, 2023
- Network
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HBO Max
- Showrunner
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Craig Mazin
- Directors
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Craig Mazin
- Writers
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Neil Druckmann, Craig Mazin
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Bella Ramsey
Ellie Williams
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
