Coffee Chats has gone post-apocalyptic! The fourth episode of ScreenRant's premier interview series features fire-infused battle with a bloater, and his recent visits back to his high school and college, all at Gumption Coffee in New York City's Midtown Manhattan.
Luna follows previous Coffee Chats guests the Rev-9 terminator in Terminator: Dark Fate, has done the work of his career on The Last of Us. He appeared as a guest star in season 1 before being bumped up to the main cast in season 2.
In Coffee Chats, Luna brings his enthusiasm for the standard breakfast beverage into Gumption Coffee's Midtown cafe, detailing the role that funny role that cappuccinos played on The Last of Us set. He then recounts his memories of The Last of Us season 2's "Through The Valley," the show's most climactic episode yet, and what the emotions were like during that shoot.
Coffee Chats no.4 w/ Gabriel Luna
Luna Enjoys Cappuccinos, But Specifically Gravitates Towards Espresso
Coffee has been a staple of Luna's life since he took his talents to Hollywood, but he was first introduced to the beverage when he was growing up in Austin, Texas. Luna pointed to his grandmother as the one responsible for his love of coffee.
"I very distinctly that cup that she had. Mexican grandmothers, they have these ceramic things with this disc shape on the bottom that's kind of conical and then the spout of the coffee cup. It's kind of almost like this UFO-looking thing. It has gradients. It goes from brown to tan. I that specific cup that she would always have, and she just drank black coffee her whole life. That's how I developed my taste for it, or my lack of requirements for cream or anything like that. She was just black coffee her whole life, just straight up Folgers in the automatic coffee maker."
Luna Was Well Caffeinated While Shooting "Through The Valley"
"I Several Coffee Trucks Coming To Set..."
That love of coffee only increased on the set of The Last of Us. Now that his character of Tommy Miller is in the show's main cast, his responsibilities on the production have increased tenfold. This was particularly exemplified in The Last of Us Season 2, Episode 2 "Through The Valley," which sees Luna's Tommy lead the Jackson, Wyoming community's defense against invading clickers.
"Jacqueline Lesko and Cecil O'Connor, our producers, were always really sweet, constantly with the coffee trucks. They brought one around that time because of how just trying and daunting the task of getting that scene done was. We shot it over like three weeks. I do several coffee trucks coming to set just to try to smooth it out with everyone who was working so hard.
It was just insane, man. A massive undertaking. Pyro going off everywhere, jumping on horses, mounting the horses, riding down the street. A hundred stunt men, a hundred plus background actors, all in full prosthetic makeup designed, all distressed with fungus growing through the fabrics."
Luna Personally Pitched A Significant Change From The Last Of Us Game
"I Don't Think That Would Be True To Who He Is As A Person"
As Tommy is defending Jackson, his brother is on his last breath. "Through The Valley" adapts the most shocking scene from The Last of Us game, as Joel Miller (Pedro Pascal) is beaten to death with a golf club. In the game, Tommy is in the room as his brother is being killed, but the show swaps him out for Dina (Isabela Merced), a change that Luna himself personally pitched.
I had made the request to Neil and Craig in the first season. 'Does Tommy need to be there, completely incapacitated?' In the game, when they're saving Abby, it's Joel and Tommy that are there, and Tommy very kind of casually goes, 'This is Joel, I'm Tommy.' You just told the stranger your identity, which I don't think would be true to his training and who he is as a person.
Thankfully Neil and Craig were both extremely receptive to the idea, to the point where they wrote this whole battle sequence where Tommy can actually be of use to his people and of service to his people rather than being knocked out as his brother's being murdered."
More About ScreenRant's Coffee Chats
Coffee Chats operates as a mixture of personal discussion through the lens of coffee as well as a dive into the guest's latest project. Along the way, we'll hit a Cold Brew Open, give our First Sip Synopsis, discuss our personal Coffee Callbacks, share our dream Desert Island Drinks and more.
"I pride myself on being a conversationalist, and there's no better setting to chat it up with someone than a cafe," ScreenRant Reporter, Host Liam Crowley said. "Back when I attended Syracuse University, I used to make 'coffee review' videos with my friends on my social media. To essentially expand that 60-second concept into a full-blown production and be accompanied by some of the biggest names in Hollywood is a true 'pinch me' moment."
"From the moment I reached out to Liam about ing ScreenRant's New York team, we envisioned expanding our content offerings with engaging, in-depth interviews, including an original series," ScreenRant Editorial, Branding, and PR Director Rob Keyes said. "Liam already had an idea for this, and Coffee Chats perfectly embodies this vision, offering a unique format that connects audiences with leading industry talent while ing local businesses. We are thrilled to launch this series and collaborate with local establishments on this exciting initiative.”
"Over the past 21 years, ScreenRant has interviewed every star in Hollywood several times," ScreenRant Content Director Alex Leadbeater said. "Across press junkets, red carpets, convention s and beyond, we've been a constant presence in the entertainment industry. Coffee Chats builds upon this success to create a more intimate backdrop for a more personal, longer-form style of interview."
Coffee Chats is created by Crowley, Keyes, and Leadbeater and is produced by Tiffany Loving, Laura Watson, Jacques Reeder, John Aljets, Leah Nucum, and Cesar Garcia.
Check out our other Coffee Chats episodes with...
Coffee Chats with Gabriel Luna is available on YouTube now.
-
Coffee Chats
ScreenRant's interview series Coffee Chats brings the biggest names in Hollywood to NYC-based cafes for a casual conversation over a cup of coffee.
-
The Last of Us
The Last of Us is a post-apocalyptic action-adventure franchise created by Neil Druckmann and Bruce Straley, developed by Naughty Dog. It centers around survivors in a world ravaged by a fungal infection turning humans into aggressive creatures. The story primarily follows Joel and Ellie in the original game, while the sequel adds new characters like Abby. The franchise includes video games, a television series, comics, and other media.
