Neil Druckmann Reveals Why Sam Raimi’s The Last Of Us Movie Didn’t Happen

Naughty Dog co-president, writer, developer, and producer Neil Druckmann has revealed why Sam Raimi’s The Last of Us movie didn’t happen.

sarah and joel the last of us
Credit: Naughty Dog

Apparently, the decision not to produce the Sam Raimi adaptation was due to Sony wanting to make it a big action movie, something that Druckmann was firmly against [via TheGamer].

When speaking to the Script Apart podcast, Druckmann explained that he would want a The Last of Us movie to remain faithful to the source material. This was apparently something that Druckmann, Sony, and Raimi couldn’t agree upon.

the last of us
Credit: Naughty Dog

The Last of Us movie from Sam Raimi was put into motion in 2014, not long after the release of the original game in 2013 for the PlayStation 3. Raimi was attached as the producer by Sony, but the project never passed pre-production.

A lot of the thinking and notes were like ‘how do we make it bigger?… I think that’s ultimately why the movie wasn’t made,” explained Druckmann.

You can listen to the full episode of the Script Apart podcast with Neil Druckmann above.

Personally, going by what Druckmann has said, I am in complete agreement. The Last of Us is about the human struggle and relationships in a post-apocalyptic world. It’s not about all-out action and explosions. 

Thankfully, however, we do have The Last of Us TV series from HBO to look forward to. Druckmann will be the showrunner, working with Craig Mazin (Chernobyl). By all accounts, the series seems to be remaining true to its source material.

hbo logo ellie
Credit: HBO/Naughty Dog

We already know that Pedro Pascal (Game of Thrones, The Mandalorian) and Bella Ramsey (Game of Thrones) are signed up to play Joel and Ellie respectively. If reports are also true, filming for The Last of Us TV series will begin on July 5th 2021, and will run until June 8th, 2022.

Are you happy that Sam Raimi’s The Last of Us movie never came to be? Let us know across our social media channels.

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Featured Image Credit: Naughty Dog