The Last of Us Showrunner Concerned About Fad on Adapting Video Games

Craig Mazin, co-creator of HBO's The Last of Us, is worried about the future of video game adaptations.

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Mateusz Libera10 July 2023
Source: The Last of Us, Craig Mazin, Neil Druckmann, HBO, 2023
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The Last of Us from HBO scored a huge success and was quickly hailed as the best TV adaptation of a video game in recent years. Recent trends indicate that there will be more and more projects of this type every year, as proven, for example, by the release of Super Mario Bros. the Movie. In a sense, it can be said that this is a great direction, as both of the aforementioned productions were enthusiastically received by game fans and viewers alike. Other film projects based on games may also get greenlit. Craig Mazin believes, however, that not all shows will be as good and faithful to the originals as we think.

Mazin, who along with Neil Druckmann is responsible for the TV adaptation of The Last of Us: Part I, touched on the future of such projects. In an interview with Josh Horowitz on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, the showrunner admitted that the success of The Last of Us is mainly due to the great story told in the original. Craig Mazin believes that not every popular video game has a storyline that can be translated into a movie or TV series, which is why he expressed his concern about future projects of this type.

"I'm a little upset because we were working on what I think is the best story told in video games. I think other people think the same, ranking it among the "top 10 best games." There are a lot of great video games that are excellent because of their gameplay, but not necessarily ready for an adaptation, and one that is expected to succeed. Therefore, the best possible scenario is that we are in for a lot of amazing game adaptations. The worst-case scenario, on the other hand, is that there could also be a wave of badadaptations."

It is worth mentioning that currently being transferred to the screen are, among others Fallout from Amazon, the third part of Sonic, Borderlands or Minecraft: The Movie, which we won't see until mid-2025. The premieres of these adaptations will tell us whether the fad of film adaptations of popular video games will be something that will define the beginning of the 2020s, or whether it will pass quickly.

Mateusz Libera

Mateusz Libera

He began his writing adventure by creating stories, later he followed the humanities path, choosing studies in journalism and social communication. He published his first texts on his personal blog and for contests. At the beginning of 2023, he joined the film department of GRYOnline.pl, where he started working as an author of articles about movies. He is interested in fantasy, history, RPG games, and strategies. He is also a long-time player of League of Legends - he has been playing since the second season. Additionally, he writes adventure and fantasy books, but in this field he is still a novice. Currently, he has published one collection of stories.

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