creators The Last of Us Neil Druckmann and Craig Mazin explain why Ellie's climax in episode 8 was changed from the original video game.
Below are spoilers for Episode XNUMX. The Last of Us!
creators The Last of Us recently explained why Ellie's (Bella Ramsey) episode 8 climax was changed from the original video game. After a drug deal with cannibal religious leader David (Scott Shepard), Ellie discovers that his men are after her, leading to her capture. Although David wants her to join his community, Ellie continues to feud with the man. This leads to a life-and-death showdown between the two when Ellie brutally kills David with a meat cleaver.
While fleeing the burning restaurant, Ellie collapses into the snow in shock. Joel finds her and they embrace, bringing Ellie back to reality. However, in the original video game scene, Joel and Ellie met in a restaurant, in the middle of a fiery inferno.
On the podcast creators Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann discussed why Joel and Ellie's strong reunion was changed in episode 8. Read what is said below:
Druckmann: I think that our conversations were such that we did not want this to happen with a fire around. Like, there is a risk of fire. It just felt a little different in live action than in the game.
Mazin: Yes, there was a question like "How does Joel get in if David has the keys?" It was a bit like logic and then there was a bit of a desire for our Ellie to complete it to the point where she could literally walk away on her own.
Like a series The Last of Us changed Ellie and David
As with most TV shows, The Last of Us the plot and characters largely remained faithful to the source material. Episode 8 is tied into the corresponding winter chapter of the video game, a segment in which Ellie comes face to face with David and his henchmen in a snowy resort village. However, the series made several significant changes to the narrative.
Players of the game would have noticed that the main action sequence was removed from the beginning of the episode in which Ellie and David collaborated against waves of infected, including a terrifying bloat. Although Ellie was initially wary of David when they first met, he proved to be reliable in combat, causing her to let her guard down before David revealed his true nature.
The biggest change in The Last of Us views David and his backstory as a religious leader. As in the game, David seemed compassionate and wanted Ellie to join his group. The show added an extra layer to the character through his religious nature, using Christianity to keep his people in line while elevating his own importance. The changes required the appearance of a community in the show, which was not the case in the original game. In a week, viewers will see how the changes in the series affected the iconic ending of the story.
Source: Podcast The Last of Us on Youtube
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