Posted in: HBO, TV | Tagged: HBO, Kaitlyn Dever, neil druckmann, the last of us

The Last of Us Star Kaitlyn Dever Originally Discussed Playing Ellie

The Last of Us' Kaitlyn Dever on how her journey to Abby on the series began with an interest in playing Ellie in the scrapped film version.

Things have come full circle for Kaitlyn Dever, as she was penciled in for the live-action adaptation of The Last of Us long before it became an HBO series. As the original game is 12 years old, with its original release in 2013 for PlayStation 3, there were already discussions about a film version that would chronicle Joel and Ellie's journey across the country during the fungal apocalypse. At the season two premiere of the Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann-created series, the actress spoke with The Hollywood Reporter about how she was initially looked at for the role of Ellie before the film idea was dropped in favor of the TV series and how she found her way back as Abby, a militia soldier seeking revenge.

The Last of Us Star Kaitlyn Dever on Getting 'Part II' Spoiled and "Carrying a Lot of Weight"

Dever reflected on her early journey with The Last of Us and the tour she had from Druckmann's Naughty Dog, the company behind the game. "I didn't even audition. It was only just like meetings I was having with Neil. I was going to Naughty Dog and he was showing me how the game was created and definitely giving me spoilers for game two years before it came out; I had to carry a lot of weight, it's been rough these last 10 years, I have to say," she said. "I always thought about it as this thing that I bonded a lot with my dad, and we played the game together. I had those few months where I was talking to Neil about potentially playing Ellie, but then, as moviemaking goes, that went away for a while."

The Apple Cider Vinegar and Booksmart star would take over the role originated by Laura Bailey, who voiced the character in the original 2020 Part II, which was released originally on Sony's PlayStation 4. Bailey made a cameo in HBO's season one finale as one of the nursing staff presiding over Ellie's (Bella Ramsey) fatal surgery as Joel (Pedro Pascal) killed the doctor who was going to perform it. Game actors Troy Baker and Ashley Johnson, who are the original voices for Joel and Ellie, played original roles in the HBO series.

The only actors to reprise their roles from The Last of Us games are Merle Dandridge, who played Marlene, the one who set Joel and Ellie on their quest in season one, and Jeffrey Wright, who plays Isaac from the game's Part II for season two. There are several deviations from the original game, which has since been rebranded as Part I, but expanded upon in the HBO series like Bill (Nick Offerman) and Frank's (Murray Bartlett), more insight on life before the apocalypse and cause, and its greater focus on drama and character development than action.

With season one's release, Dever couldn't been happier at the series' progress, "I was really excited to see it as a show and Bella did such an amazing job and the two of them, Bella and Pedro, do something so magical in the first season that I was honestly just a fan. So when it came back around into my life" with the role of Abby, "it almost felt like, 'Oh, this was always meant to be in my life, just in a different way,' and that felt really cool." Another deviation for Part II is Dever has a smaller frame and is less muscular than her video game counterpart. For more, including comments from Druckmann and Mazin on season two, you can check out the full interview.

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