There are various things one could call HBO’s “The Last of Us,” but there’s one thing you can never call it around the cast and crew – a zombie show.
In the series, the human population has been decimated by a mutated strain of the Cordyceps fungus which takes over a host and controls them whilst also keeping them alive and slowly devouring their body over time – turning flesh into fungus in the process.
There are no supernatural origins or man-made viruses and no decomposing bodies with limbs and flesh rotting off ala “The Walking Dead,” here the infected are still alive and converting into fungal creatures of different types like ‘clickers’ and ‘bloaters’.
Cinematographer Eben Bolter, who shot four episodes of the show’s ten-episode first season, recently spoke with The Credits and said using the word ‘zombie’ to refer to the fungal infected characters on the show was strictly not allowed on set:
“There’s a lot of things The Last of Us is not. It’s not a cliche zombie movie, it’s not Hollywood backlit where everyone’s close-up is perfect. It’s a world of organic cinematic naturalism, and that’s something I could just feel.
We weren’t allowed to say the Z word on set. It was like a banned word. They were the Infected. We weren’t a zombie show. Of course, there’s tension building and jump scares, but the show’s really about our characters; The Infected are an obstacle they have to deal with.”
The talk comes as one of the show’s stars Bella Ramsey responded to some of the backlash the series has had with the show’s portrayal of LGBTQ+ characters in the acclaimed third episode.
Ramsey plays Ellie opposite Pedro Pascal’s Joel in the series and the character’s sexuality is important to her story arc as the ‘Left Behind’ backstory involving Ellie and how she got ‘bit’ will shortly air and no doubt start another round of backlash. Responding to the complaints, Ramsey tells GQ:
“I know people will think what they want to think. But they’re gonna have to get used to it. If you don’t want to watch the show because it has gay storylines, because it has a trans character, that’s on you, and you’re missing out.”
Ramsey adds she is not “particularly anxious about” reaction from some viewers regarding more queer representation when they adapt the second game: “It isn’t gonna make me afraid. I think that comes from a place of defiance.”
The sixth episode of “The Last of Us” will air this coming Sunday, with the finale slated for March 12th. As a result of the series, sales for the PS5 and PS4 versions of the game have jumped, whilst anticipation is high for the PC release of ‘Part 1’ on March 28th.
