The Last of Us delivers surprise character return in latest episode - NewsBreak
Joel may be gone, but his shadow still looms large over The Last of Us .
Pedro Pascal made his anticipated return in Sunday’s fifth episode of season two, marking his first appearance since Joel’s brutal death earlier this season. The emotional flashback came just after Ellie ( Bella Ramsey ) killed a member of Abby’s ( Kaitlyn Dever ) group, kicking off her mission of vengeance.
She woke up in her bedroom in Jackson, and there he is, Joel, standing in the doorway. “Hey, kiddo,” he said softly, his voice instantly familiar to viewers.
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“If we’ve done our jobs right, you’ll feel Joel there a lot,” showrunner Craig Mazin told Entertainment Weekly .
The HBO series is now drawing more directly from The Last of Us Part II, the 2020 video game in which Joel appeared frequently through flashbacks.
The show is expected to adapt those memory sequences as well, including a heartfelt museum visit with Ellie and the introduction of Eugene, a character fans have only heard about so far. Eugene will be played by Joe Pantoliano (The Matrix, The Sopranos).
Pascal has teased that not all of Joel’s appearances will be straightforward.
“Something that I guess I do feel like keeping secret is how those things will play and where they will be placed, which I think is still a lovely thing to not know for people that watch the show,” he said in a March interview with EW.
Returning to set to shoot Joel’s flashbacks offered Pascal a unique perspective, especially watching Ramsey take the lead. “From my first day of season 2, it’s what I saw,” Pascal said.
“And then in returning, seeing how bonded everyone was in their experience as a cast and as a crew, I feel like that had so much to do with Bella’s kindness and patience and generosity.”
New episodes of The Last of Us air Sundays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on HBO and stream on Max.
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