Neil Druckmann — co-creator of The Last of Us — has just revealed the reason why he stepped down from his role as co-showrunner ahead of season 3.
Co-showrunners Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann did the nearly impossible: successfully create a live-action adaptation of a video game. For two seasons, The Last of Us, based on the video game of the same name, captivated audiences through well-written characters and a distinctive story of a post-apocalyptic world, overcome by a fungus that got into the food supply.
The HBO series started strong, earning several award nominations and a SAG Award win for Pedro Pascal, who played Joel Miller. Season 2's reception waned, with audiences conflicted over the decision to stay true to the video game by killing off one of the two main characters, Joel, thus making Ellie the focus of the story.
It wasn't long after season 2's cliffhanger finale that Druckmann announced he would be stepping back to focus on other pursuits. But why and what's next?
In an interview with Variety, Druckmann revealed why he is leaving the show following season 2.
"Now I felt like the path has been set for it (The Last of Us television show). It was time to go back to the thing that started it all, which is just full-time video game work. But other things are coming and we can announce more things soon.”
He explains how thrilled he was that people watched the show without realizing it was based on a video game. He was excited to know that people who watched the show decided to play the video game it's based on.
With Mazin remaining as showrunner for the series, which has been renewed for season 3, Druckmann can focus on the video game Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet. What is the status of the video game?
Druckmann explains, "I can tell you we’re in the thick of it. We’re making it, we’re playing it. We’re firing on all cylinders. I’ve said this before, but I really mean it, I’m really feeling it right now: It’s the most ambitious game we’ve ever made."
As for whether we'll be seeing any of The Last of Us cast in
Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, he mentioned speaking to Tony Dalton, who played Joel and Tommy's father in
"I DM’d him on Instagram, like 'Hey, man, I don’t know if you’ve done video games before or performance capture, but I think you’d be perfect for this. Do you mind jumping on a Zoom call? I just want to show you something,'" Druckmann added, "He’s like, 'Yeah, I’m in. I’d love to do it.' So Tony Dalton is there, and maybe there’s a few more."
Stream The Last of Us seasons 1 and 2 on HBO MAX.
RHOBH SHOCK: Denise Richards Claims She Made Ex Charlie Sheen’s Hookers ‘White Trash’ Sandwiches, Exposing Scandalous Behind-the-Scenes Moments That Fans Can’t Believe
Before Bravo fans watched Denise Richards on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills and her more recent series, Denise Richards & Her Wild Things, she was married to one of Hollywood’s most infamous stars. Denise and Charlie Sheen tied the knot in 2002 after a whirlwind romance that instantly caught the tabloids’ attention.
They went on to have two daughters, Sami and Lola Sheen, but Charlie’s hard-partying, drug-fueled lifestyle quickly took its toll. Denise filed for divorce in 2005, and the couple’s split turned into one of Hollywood’s most dysfunctional.
Now, Denise is sharing what it was really like during Charlie’s most chaotic years. Her story involves late-night door pounding, a nervous Jon Cryer, and sandwiches served to a crowd she did not exactly plan for.
Denise Richards opened up in Charlie Sheen’s Netflix documentary
In the second episode of Netflix’s new doc, aka Charlie Sheen, Denise revealed she was often asked to check on her ex when he went missing from work.
“They would call me all the f*cking time to go there because I can’t get fired. I was your ex-wife, I was already fired,” she explained. “When they were desperate, they were like, ‘Could you please come over and see if he’s alive? We haven’t seen him for two days.’ And so, then I would pound on his door. And then I’d keep pounding. I’m like, ‘Open the f*ck up!’”
On one of those visits, she arrived with food. She found Charlie’s Two and a Half Men co-star, Jon Cryer, looking uneasy. “I’m making sandwiches and Jon was super nervous and he goes, ‘What are you doing?’ I go, ‘Well, he hasn’t eaten and I’m making sandwiches,’” Denise recalled.
The scene quickly got stranger. “And then you see two or three hookers come downstairs. And I remember Jon asking me, ‘Are you making them sandwiches?’ and I go, ‘Well, yeah. What am I gonna say? Sorry, because of what you do for a living, you don’t get one of my white trash mayo, mustard, turkey, cheese, lettuce sandwiches?’”
Denise – who’s currently going through another messy divorce – laughed about the moment, pointing out her sandwiches were more about function than flair. “It wasn’t like I was making a gourmet sandwich. Like, I’m trying to help keep him good,” she said. RHOBH fans might remember that Denise has fed Charlie’s paid companions more than once.
Today, things between the exes are far less dramatic. Denise and Charlie recently smiled side by side at the doc’s premiere, their first red carpet appearance together in 20 years. This time, the only thing on the menu was nostalgia.
