Gustavo Santaolalla, who composed The Last of Us’ original score, will be working on HBO’s adaptation. Naughty’s Dog’s The Last of Us came out on PlayStation 3 in 2013 and was one of the biggest games of the year. Less than a year later, there were already talks of a cinematic adaptation with big names like Sam Raimi attached to produce. That adaptation entered a period of developmental hell in 2016 and never came to fruition.
The creative director and writer of both The Last of Us and The Last of Us Part II (set to launch in May), Neil Druckmann is most likely pleased there won’t be a film. In retrospect, Naughty Dog has expressed disinterest in direct adaptations of their games; titles like Uncharted and The Last of Us are cinematic on their own. The latter tells the story of Joel and Ellie— the jaded smuggler and young girl tasked with navigating and potentially saving their post-apocalyptic world. One of the reasons the game was such a hit with fans was because of its powerful performances, story, and music.
The Last of Us’ minimalist yet iconic score has been praised by critics for matching its gameplay perfectly. This is all thanks to the work of Santaolalla. Druckmann announced on Twitter that Santaolalla would be joining him to help HBO adapt The Last of Us into a TV series. Outside of The Last of Us franchise, Santaolalla has also worked in television and film. The composer won consecutive Academy Awards for Best Original Score with Brokeback Mountain (2005) and Babel (2006) as well as created the theme music for The CW’s Jane the Virgin and Netflix’s Making a Murderer. Immediate reactions to the news of his involvement in The Last of Us series were overwhelmingly positive. Check out Druckmann’s tweet below.
Druckmann will bring The Last of Us to the small screen with the help of writer/producer Craig Mazin. Mazin, an avid player of The Last of Us, is known for working on the acclaimed HBO series Chernobyl. Similarly to how the Uncharted movie has now become an origin story, the decision to make The Last of Us a series instead of a movie gives the creators room to breathe. A lot of video game adaptations have been deemed failures for lifelessly rehashing beloved aspects of their source material. An episodic take on The Last of Us’ story will give Druckmann and Mazin time to introduce new characters and storylines while still honoring what made the game great.
The fact that Santaolalla is working with Druckmann and Mazin on PlayStation Productions’ first series should help it have an ominous atmosphere. Hopefully, Santaolalla will use recognizable tracks from the game along with new ones. Similar to how The Last of Us's music matched its gameplay and the story, the series’ music should accentuate and elevate its mood. Including a key creative like Santaollalla will help Joel and Ellie come to life the way many have imagined since 2013.
Source: Neil Druckmann