The Last of Us co-creator, Craig Mazin, recently revealed that the new television series changes a major zombie element from the original 2013 PlayStation 3 video game of the same name. The horror thriller stars Pedro Pascal as Joel Miller, a weathered survivor of a global apocalypse caused by a fungal infection that turns humans into zombies. Set 20 years after the initial outbreak, Joel is tasked to smuggle 14-year-old Ellie (Bella Ramsey) across the United States to the Fireflies, a radical revolutionary group that hope's to uses Ellie's rare natural immunity to the zombie virus to save the world.
Speaking with The Last of Us adaptation changes a major part of the zombies from the original video game. The co-creator explained that in the adaptation process, certain story elements needed to be changed for the new medium. Mazin, along with original The Last of Us game creator Neil Druckmann, decided to remove spores as a way for the fungal infection to spread. Read what Mazin said below:
Obviously, there are some big things that we know we're keeping, of course, but then there are challenges from the game to the show that had to be considered. For instance, little things like the spores. In the game, there are these where you encounter spores, and you need to put a gas mask on. In the world that we're creating, if we put spores in the air, it would be pretty clear that they would spread around everywhere and everybody would have to wear a mask all the time and probably everybody would be completely infected by that point. So, we challenged ourselves to come up with an interesting new way for the fungus to spread, but mostly I think we just connected with the soul and spirit of the game. [Druckmann], as the creator of the game, and me, as a fan of the game, we were caretakers on behalf of all the fans but also on behalf of all the people who haven't played the game who need a television experience that is holistic and connected to itself and doesn't feel like you need to play a game to understand.
How Removing Spores Hurts The Last of Us (And How it Helps)
The zombie-causing fungus in the original The Last of Us game is inspired by the real Cordyceps fungi. Within the video game, the infection is caused by a mutation of the fungus that affects the brain. The infection can be ed through the bite of an alive infected individual, or from spores generated by a deceased infected person.
While controlling Joel, players would need to don a gas mask to protect themselves from spore-dense areas. The removal of spores, and the external threat of an airborne fungal infection may lessen the danger of Cordyceps virus in The Last of Us television series. Where Joel would need to be wary of his surroundings to avoid accidental exposure, the series eliminates that source of tension and suspense. This significant change leads to the removal of a crucial scene from the video game where Joel and Ellie dart into a spore-filled subway station. Prior to this moment, Joel relatively disregarded her bite, and primarily saw her as an anomalous piece of cargo. When he witnesses Ellie breathe in the spores with his eyes protected by a thick gas mask, his attitude toward her softened, and he began to understand her overall significance to the world.
However, as Mazin explained, removing the Cordyceps spore element eliminates the logical question regarding the free flowing transmission of the virus. If the spores are airborne, then avoiding infection would be next to impossible. The suspension of disbelief may be too great in a live-action adaptation. Removing the spores from the HBO show not only allows for a greater sense of believability, but it gives audience that are unfamiliar with the original game a better chance of accepting the terrifying world of The Last of Us.
Source: ComicBook.com