HBO's The Last of Us has found its Tommy Miller, as Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. star Gabriel Luna has been cast to play the brother of Pedro Pascal's Joel. The series, which adapts the popular Playstation video game franchise, will be a collaboration between game director, Neil Druckmann, and the creator of HBO's Chernobyl, Craig Mazin. The first season of the show is confirmed to line up with the events of the first The Last of Us game, which was released in 2013.
Luna's Tommy is the latest role to be filled out, as the cast continues to shape up after it was announced that The Mandalorian star, Pedro Pascal, would be playing Joel, and Game of Thrones alum, Bella Ramsey, would be taking on the part of Ellie. Outside of playing the Robbie Reyes version of Ghost Rider in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Luna has also appeared in Terminator: Dark Fate and Wicked City. The actor has also worked with HBO before, appearing in True Detective and Temple Grandin for the network.
Variety was the first to break the news that Luna would be joining Pascal and Ramsey in HBO's hotly anticipated series, which will reportedly begin filming on July 5, 2021 in Calgary. The cast is becoming complete, with Luna's Tommy representing another high profile addition to the show.
Tommy is portrayed in The Last of Us game as hopeful that the world can get back to normal following the chaos caused by the outbreak of a deadly Cordyceps virus, which zombifies those who are infected. He serves as a contrast to his brother Joel, who is depicted as more pessimistic about the chances of a return to order. Tommy also served as a member of the militaristic group the Fireflies, a collective that was focused on finding a cure for the virus.
As it is not yet known just how faithfully the series will adapt the games, Luna could play a bigger role in the show than Tommy plays in 2013's The Last of Us. For example, the player learns that Tommy was a Firefly, and before that he and Joel were hunters, but these parts of Tommy and Joel's lives are never actually seen, just heard about. HBO, Druckmann, and Mazin could venture to show scenes depicting this backstory, in order to avoid accusations of the series merely serving as a shot-for-shot remake of the game.
With production for HBO's The Last of Us drawing nearer, perhaps more information, like a projected release date and additional cast members, will be released soon. Until then, fans will wait with bated breath for updates on the series.
Source: Variety