When Young Mazino heard there was a role for him in “The Last of Us” Season 2, the beloved “Beef” actor “ran to a GameStop, bought a used PS4, and played through the game” immediately. Mazino told IndieWire he was already a fan of HBO’s TV adaptation thanks to its Emmy-winning first season, but that studying the source material felt essential before meeting with series co-creators Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann. If only someone had told him, they didn’t want their actors playing the game.
“It was important for Craig [Mazin as showrunner] to understand the game fully,” said Druckmann to IndieWire. “With our actors, what we told them — and they often would not listen to us — we asked them, ‘Don’t play the game.’ Because the games have performances that are brilliant as far as I’m concerned.”
Head of the games studio Naughty Dog, Druckmann co-wrote “The Last of Us: Part II” with Halley Gross. The best-selling sequel arrived on consoles in 2020 and went on to win “Game of the Year” from hundreds of organizations and publications worldwide. It was important to Druckmann that neither of his projects overshadow the other, and that the game’s voice and motion-capture cast got their due.
“Ashley Johnson created a perfect Ellie, and I didn’t want Bella [Ramsey] to try to copy what Ashley Johnson did,” Druckmann explained. “I wanted to see Bella Ramsey‘s version. That’s why you bring in talented artists, so they can reinterpret the material.”
Even having jumped the gun on the games a bit, Mazino got the part. He’ll appear as Jesse on “The Last of Us” Season 2 soon, joining a complex ensemble that’s opposite Ramsey for Ellie’s darkest chapter yet. Ramsey told IndieWire they were successfully steered away from playing the video games when they first signed on for Season 1, and four years later, they haven’t made progress.
“I’m not a gamer and haven’t played the games because I can’t do it, I’ve tried,” Ramsey said. “I’ve watched playthroughs. That is my way in. I have such respect for the people who do that. Thank you to the people who filmed themselves playing it and put it on YouTube because you literally saved the day.”
Praising the series’ wide audience and “accessibility to non-gamers,” Ramsey said they would routinely watch cutscenes from the game as soon as a day after filming new versions for the TV show. At times, the “Game of Thrones” actor said they could feel those two worlds colliding on set.
“Sometimes I’ll be directed and I’m like, ‘Oh, I see you’re trying to get me to do the thing that was in the game!’ — which is cool,” said Ramsey. “Then having that reference point is actually really helpful to be like, ‘Oh yes, I know exactly what you are asking me to do because I’ve seen this happen already and I’m able to replicate it,’ but in a way that still feels like it’s not copying but coming from me and fresh and new and exciting.”
Druckmann didn’t cite any specific technical benefits from having Ramsey observe the original for the adaptation, but he did applaud the former “Game of Thrones” actor for their commitment and ambition.
“They want to know as much as possible about how to lift [those details] and make it their own, and they have,” said Druckmann. “To me, that is the best way to honor what Ashley Johnson did is to make it your own and not just try to duplicate what Ashley did.”
Asked for any last remarks, speaking with IndieWire, Mazino shouted out his counterpart in the game.
“I know there’s some pressure involved in playing a character that’s already beloved and that is being adapted,” Mazino said. “Stephen Chang did such a great job portraying Jesse, but it’s all just reference material. It all amalgamates into what I hope to be an honest performance of a really well-thought-out, well-developed character.”
“I’m excited for [people] who are fans of the game to feel like they’re experiencing the story again for the first time,” echoed Ramsey. “And people who don’t know the game, who haven’t played the game, I’m so excited for them to experience it without knowing anything.”
“The Last of Us” Season 2 airs new episodes on Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on HBO and Max.
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