Pedro Pascal’s Impromptu Line in Season 1 of The Last of Us Perfectly Suits Joel’s Character

These days we have more and more video game adaptations than ever before. While films like Uncharted and the franchise Sonic the Hedgehog were entertaining and comedic commercial successes, the man behind the production, Craig Mazin, proved that video games could be turned into high-profile dramas. Critically acclaimed, we are going to talk about The Last of Us on HBO, more specifically from an improvised line of dialogue.

Emotion cannot be controlled

In the sixth episode, titled “Kin”, Joel and Ellie reunite with Tommy and his pregnant wife Maria (played by Rutina Wesley), in a peaceful survivor colony in Jackson, Wyoming. Although he initially suggested to his brother that he and Ellie should leave soon, Joel is overcome by an emotional crisis when he has the opportunity to speak privately with Tommy. The most poignant moment of this episode comes during an improvisation by Pascal, adding a poignant line :

Lately there are these moments when fear comes out of nowhere and my heart feels like it has stopped. I have dreams every night.

A fairly short sentence, quite simple, but full of hidden meanings. Mazin pointed out that although this monologue was “obviously difficult to write”, Pascal was so emotionally invested that he gave a deeper dimension to his character.

See The Last of Us Part II (PS5) on Amazon

A “simple” sentence

Perhaps a last-minute addition to the series, Pascal's statement about how Joel expresses his loss reveals a lot about how he deals with his trauma. Although viewers witnessed Sarah's death a few episodes ago, for Joel it was two decades ago! Decades during which he did everything to erase her image from his memory. Joel's remark suggests that he intentionally suppressed this memory so that he no longer had to deal with his pain. This is why he avoids discussing Sarah's memories, even happy ones, with Ellie. ; probably by completely ignoring them he hopes to move forward.

However, the fact that he still dreams of her reveals that Joel never had the chance to truly grieve. A simple sentence which, if interpreted well, adds a particularly complex and realistic dimension to the character that is Joel.