SPOILER ALERT:This post contains major details from Sundays episode ofHBOsThe Last of Us.
She watches, helpless, as Abby delivers the final blow.
The episode is relentlessly brutal, which the creators acknowledge.
‘The Last Of Us,’ a signature show on MaxHBO / Liane Hentscher
This episode is upsetting to me, too.
I just want people to know that we are not here snickering.
We are with them.
Bella Ramsey in ‘The Last of Us’HBO
This hurts, Mazin tells Deadline.
I certainly thought I was prepared, but I was not.
Were you nervous about it?
Are you still nervous at all about the reaction?
CRAIG MAZIN:I mean, I was terrified.
Mark Mylod and I were just panicking because we knew the bar was high.
I dont know, trying to hit that bar, we were incredibly nervous.
Were you nervous, Neil?
I experienced the worst of the negative reaction to it already five years ago.
So in that respect, I havent been nervous.
Although Ive been getting more nervous lately as the days are turning into hours before this thing airs.
Im very curious what the reaction is going to be.
DEADLINE:Yes, theres two factions of viewers here.
Craig, what was your reaction to this story beat when you first found out about it?
MAZIN:Well, I didnt find out.
Thats the thing about a video game, youre inside of it, which is particularly terrifying.
I kind of spelled the whole thing off for him.
Hes like, Oh yeah, that makes sense.
MAZIN:It does hurt tremendously when it happens.
This is a show that has an ending.
We are a show that confronts people dealing with the hardest emotions.
Watching Bella in that moment was heart-wrenching.
There were a lot of tears that day from all of us.
DEADLINE:How long did it take to shoot?
MAZIN:Well, theres a few scenes before that one.
So we block shot everything in that room, in the ski lodge.
So Ellie on the ground and looking at Joel and him looking at her, and then the aftermath.
That was one brutal day.
DEADLINE:What were the conversations like in terms of how graphic and violent to make this scene?
DRUCKMANN:We did talk about how much violence youre seeing.
Its interesting that youre saying its more graphic, because its actually less.
In the game, the lacerations he has on his face and stuff are much more intense.
So I remember those being the conversations.
DEADLINE:What did Mark bring to the table as the director for this episode?
MAZIN:How much time you have?
He is a dream for the actors.
Hes obviously very good at killing main characters.
He was the director onGame of Thronesfor Bella Ramseys first scene.
He was their first television director.
He was just an absolute joy to work with, and I miss him.
I know hes off doingHarry Potter.
I miss him, but I cant imagine anybody better for that.
For Kaitlyn, for everybody, he was just the exact right choice.
I, personally, appreciate that.
Thats where his mind was at.
That was his top priority.
DEADLINE:I really want to talk about the attack on Jackson, too.
As you say, there is a lot in this episode and Joels death is so monumental already.
What made you decide to incorporate this horde of Infected descending on Jackson?
MAZIN:Well, one of the things we talked about was the idea of breaking everything.
When you feel like youve finally reached stability, sometimes everything falls apart.
All the things that made you safe are gone.
Joel made Ellie feel safe.
That impenetrable wall made Jackson feel safe, and it got broken.
How is that going to impact these character dynamics?
What might that do to Ellie and Dinas relationship?
Its something that in the game, we talk about Dina having a relationship with Joel.
You never get to see it.
We dont have that mechanical benefit.
DEADLINE:In the first episode, theres a moment in the supermarketwhere Ellie picks up a bottle.
It felt so much like the gameplay.
How do you pinpoint moments like that to pay homage to the actual mechanics and gameplay?
MAZIN:Im looking to incorporate it all the time.
The question is, where will it fit?
The problem is, a lot of gameplay doesnt work in this medium.
It doesnt work as a sort of passive experience.
It should be a brick or a bottle.
That fear actually did feel very portable to the television medium.
Now that its all out in the open, can you speak a bit more in depth about it?
As a viewer, youre like, Oh my god, somethings about to go down.
Joels dealt with threats before.
They still dont know whats coming.
[Abbys] gone too far.
All you know is, she is unsatisfied.
Whatever she thought she was going to get from this, she didnt get it.
