Pedro Pascal’s Quick Response to Playing Joel in The Last of Us
Do you know that Pedro Pascal didn’t need much convincing to take on the role of Joel?
Let’s be honest. We can all agree that Pedro Pascal always amazes the audience through every role he plays! The sassy prince in Game of Thrones? Sure. The determined and dandy DEA agent in Narcos? Say no more!
So, of course, it honestly shouldn’t come as a surprise when Pedro successfully delivered a top-notch performance portraying Joel in the series adaptation of The Last of Us.
Now, while the game fans are welcome to thank Pedro profusely for doing Joel’s character justice, we shall not forget Neil Druckmann, too! Not only is he the game’s writer and director, but he’s also the co-creator of the series. This means it was entirely his call to hire Pedro Pascal as Joel!
In several interviews, the actor admitted that he immediately agreed to portray the main character after having a Zoom meeting with Neil!
Well, how exactly did Neil rope Pedro into the cast ensemble? I mean, we all know that during the same time, Pedro was probably also busy filming for the third season of The Mandalorian, so Neil Druckmann got some tricks on his sleeve! Read below to get all the juicy BTS stories of The Last of Us!
Why Did Neil Druckmann Choose Pedro Pascal to Play Joel? The Behind-the-Scene Story
When you’re an actor of Pedro Pascal’s caliber, it’s normal to be offered the role instead of auditioning for one. Well, that was what exactly happened with The Last of Us!
According to BuzzFeed, Neil Druckmann admitted that he “had been eyeing” Pedro as a suitable actor to portray the role of Joel.
“The beauty of what Pedro is doing on the show is that he’s suppressing all that, and he’s not revealing it,” Neil explained. “It becomes these really compelling moments of humanity that you see it slowly emerge,” he continued gushing about Pedro.
Furthermore, Neil also claimed that one of his main reason for choosing Pedro to play Joel is that Pedro is the kind of actor who “you can just look in their eyes and find a tortured soul” and that he has equal parts of fun and equal parts of charisma. All in all, Neil thinks that Pedro is an excellent actor!
Well, I think it’s fair to say that we’re not the only ones who fawn over Pedro Pascal!
Now, the next question surfaces: What made Pedro Pascal immediately agree to play Joel?
Pedro Pascal’s Quick Response to Playing Joel in The Last of Us: Story from the Leading Man
If you’re excited about something, you best believe you’ll probably remember it for the rest of your life, right? Can’t say the same for Pedro Pascal! While excited to play Joel in The Last of Us, Pedro forgot he got the role!
Pedro received the offer to play Joel while he was in London, while all the important people were in Los Angeles. So, he stayed up late just to read the script and talk to Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann, the creators of The Last of Us.
Immediately “fall in love” with the storyline and the team, Pedro didn’t find it in him to refuse or even postpone the meeting!
In an interview with Jimmy Fallon, Pedro revealed that he “take an Ambien” to help him keep the excitement low and fall asleep. However, shortly after taking the pill, Pedro got a call telling him he had gotten the job!
“I was excited, I guess, but I didn’t remember,” he laughed. “I woke up in the morning, and the first thing that occurred to me was like, “Oh, man. I really want that job,” Pedro continued.
Thank goodness he didn’t get left out, or we wouldn’t have seen Pedro’s brilliant performance as Joel in the series!
Of course, knowing Pedro Pascal, he would bring his best performance into the game. His brilliant portrayal of Joel amazed many people, including Troy Baker, the voice actor of Joel in the original video games!
Troy shared with Vulture that Pedro’s portrayal as Joel constantly catches him off guard every episode, but in a good way. As the original person who put the soul in Joel’s character, Troy praised Pedro for bringing “this vulnerability” that couldn’t be “done in the video game.”
Hope You Find the Behind-the-Scenes Story of The Last of Us Enjoyable!
Now, talking about the second season of The Last of Us, do you think Pedro Pascal will reprise his role as Joel? Or will Neil decide to kill off Joel’s character in the second season, just like in the game?