Pedro Pascal is a busy man. He recently starred in the Judd Apatow film The Bubble and soon fronts The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent alongside Nicolas Cage. And that’s not to mention the impending season three of The Mandalorian. But in addition, the booked and busy Pascal will also lead the much-anticipated adaptation of The Last of Us. The Naughty Dog game is especially lauded for its striking storytelling and stunning visuals. But while Pascal feels incredibly impressed by the games, we likely won’t hear much about his journey playing The Last of Us. Because, quite simply, Pedro Pascal is not good at the game.
In a recent interview with GQ, the interviewer revealed themselves as a massive fan of The Last of Us. This prompted Pascal to share that he just doesn’t have It when it comes to the game.
“It’s so sad, I haven’t any skill,” Pascal said. “I tried, you know. And then it was only a matter of minutes before I had to hand it over to my nephew. It really takes a specific kind of skill, and I don’t have it.”
I found Joel so impressive—I found the whole of it such a visually impressive experience. And then I got worried that I would want to imitate too much, which I think could be right in some circumstances, and then a mistake in others. So I just wanted to create a healthy distance, and for that to be more in the hands of [show co-writer] Craig Mazin and [game writer and show co-writer] Neil Druckmann.
This certainly makes a lot of sense. As Pascal stated, sometimes a connection to the game works, other times it doesn’t. Tom Holland, for one, played the Uncharted games long before he boarded the film. The HBO adaptation of The Last of Us has the benefit of the game’s writer, Druckmann writing the show with Craig Mazin. So in this regard, Pascal has a direct line to the game’s creative maestro.
We’ve been patiently awaiting Pascal’s debut as Joel for a while now. And we don’t have to wait much longer as The Last of Us debuts in 2023.