HBO’s TV adaptation of Naughty Dog’s legendary video game series will apparently include at least one voice from The Last Of Us playing their on-screen counterpart in real life. While the two main characters of the post-apocalyptic show are spoken for with big-name actors, one voice actor from the gaming world will reprise their role from the PlayStation classic.
As The Hollywood Reporter detailed, Merle Dandridge will appear in the HBO series from creator Neil Druckmann and Chernobyl showrunner Craig Mazin.
The Last of Us revolves around the relationship between Joel (Pedro Pascal, The Mandalorian), a hardened survivor of the collapse of modern civilization 20 years ago, and 14-year-old Ellie (Bella Ramsey, Game of Thrones), whom he’s hired to smuggle out of an oppressive quarantine zone.
Dandridge’s Marlene is the head of the Fireflies, a resistance movement struggling for freedom against an oppressive military regime. She joins a cast that also includes Gabriel Luna as Tommy, Joel’s younger brother.
The series was officially green lit in November, and though Druckmann will oversee the series’ adaptation we already know there will be significant departures from the two games in the series. The playable version of The Last Of Us, meanwhile, has a story outline for a potential third game but it’s unclear if that will ever see the light of day right now.