The Last of Us Trailer Teases Queer Representation & The Apocalypse

The teaser trailer for The Last of Us has arrived and it sure looks the queer representation that was so essential to the video game (and especially its sequel) on which it’s based will be featured in the HBO series as well.

The series, like the game, takes place in a post-apocalyptic world where a deadly fungus has wiped out most of humanity and left monstrous zombies in its wake. Joel (Pedro Pascal), a man hardened by tragedy and the psychological toll of survival, is tasked with helping a young girl named Ellie (Bella Ramsey) cross a plague-ravaged country in an effort to save what remains of mankind. To do so, they will have to avoid or battle monsters of both the undead and all-too-human variety.

The network dropped the trailer on what is known as Outbreak Day in The Last of Us community, September 26, as that’s the date the deadly infection in the game began spreading. It offers glimpses into a world that will be very familiar to fans of the video game. In the trailer, which is set perfectly to Hank Williams’ “Alone and Forsaken,” we are offered a glimpse of a city in ruin where Ellie and Joel are being held in the quarantine zone before setting out on the road — that is when they aren’t dodging monstrous creatures known as “clickers”.

There’s one blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment between Ellie and Riley (Storm Reid) on a carousel that hints at the inclusion of their love story, which was revealed in the game’s downloadable content, The Last of Us: Left Behind.

In addition to Pascal, Ramsey, and Reid, Gabriel Luna stars as Joel’s brother, Tommy, and Merle Dandridge reprises her role from the game as the Firefly leader Marlene. Rounding out the cast is Nico Parker as Joel’s daughter, Sarah, Murray Bartlett as Frank, Nick Offerman as Bill, Anna Torv as Tess, and Melanie Lynskey as Kathleen, the ruthless leader of a revolutionary movement in Kansas City. Fans of the game will also be excited to see both Troy Baker and Ashley Johnson, who originally voiced Joel and Ellie, appear in the series in as-of-yet undisclosed roles.

Also making the transition from the games to the series is Neil Druckmann, the co-president of video game studio Naughty Dog who directed them, and who serves as co-creator and executive producer on the show alongside Craig Mazin, the Emmy-winning creator of Chernobyl.

Watch the Last of Us teaser trailer below. The series is set to premiere in 2023.

RELATED | 5 Queer-Inclusive Video Games That Got Representation Right