History Trivia / TheLastOfUs

* PlayingAgainstType: Anti-heroic Joel marks Pedro Pascal's third time playing a single father on Creator/{{HBO}}, after ''Series/GameOfThrones'' anti-hero Oberyn Martell and ''Film/WonderWoman1984'' anti-villain Maxwell Lord. Unlike Oberyn and Maxwell, Joel [[OutlivingOnesOffspring outlived his offspring]], and instead cares for a surrogate child in the main story.

* {{Typecasting}}: After ''Film/{{Prospect}}'' and ''Series/TheMandalorian'', ''The Last of Us'' marks the third science fiction drama in which Pedro Pascal takes life-risking, occasionally unscrupulous measures to protect an orphan. Additionally, viewers of ''The Mandalorian'' tended to compare it to a sidequest-focused video game, as Mando travels to different planets, helps various characters complete objectives, and upgrades his armor and arsenal along the way.

* PlayingAgainstType: Joel marks Pedro Pascal's third time playing a single father on Creator/{{HBO}}, after [[Series/GameOfThrones Oberyn Martell]] and [[Film/WonderWoman1984 Maxwell Lord]]. Unlike Oberyn and Maxwell, Joel [[OutlivingOnesOffspring outlived his offspring]], and instead cares for a surrogate child in the main story.

* PlayingAgainstType: Joel marks Pedro Pascal's third time playing a single father on Creator/{{HBO}}, after [[Series/GameOfThrones Oberyn Martell]] and [[Film/WonderWoman1984 Maxwell Lord]]. Unlike Oberyn and Max Lord, Joel [[OutlivingOnesOffspring outlived his offspring]], and instead cares for a surrogate child in the main story.

* {{Typecasting}}: The trend of Pedro Pascal playing morally-gray single fathers officially stopped being a coincidence with this show, with his casting as Joel announced two months after the streaming premieres of ''Series/TheMandalorian'' Season 2 finale, ''Film/WonderWoman1984'', and ''Film/WeCanBeHeroes2020''. After ''Film/{{Prospect}}'' and ''The Mandalorian''[[note]]a show that viewers already compared to a sidequest-focused video game, as Mando travels to different planets, helps various characters complete objectives, and occasionally upgrades his armor and arsenal[[/note]], ''The Last of Us'' also marks the third science fiction drama in which Pascal protects an orphan.

* {{Typecasting}}: The trend of Pedro Pascal playing morally-gray single fathers officially stopped being a coincidence with this show, with his casting as Joel announced two months after ''Series/TheMandalorian'' Season 2, ''Film/WonderWoman1984'', and ''Film/WeCanBeHeroes2020'' all hit streaming. After ''Film/{{Prospect}}'' and ''The Mandalorian''[[note]]a show that viewers already compared to a sidequest-focused video game, as Mando travels to different planets, helps various characters complete objectives, and occasionally upgrades his armor and arsenal[[/note]], ''The Last of Us'' also marks the third science fiction drama in which Pascal protects an orphan.

* DawsonCasting: Would you believe Ellie and Joel's voice actors are only seven years apart? 14-year old Ellie is voiced by 30-year old Ashley Johnson. Inverted with circa 50-year old Joel who is voiced by 37-year old Troy Baker. Additionally, 16-year old Riley is voiced by 32-year old Yaani King, and Joel's little brother Tommy is voiced by Jeffrey Pierce, who is five years older than Troy.

* Before the movie was officially shelved, both Neil Druckmann and Troy Baker had shown interest in Creator/JoshBrolin to play Joel, while Ashley Johnson's own personal choice for Ellie was ''Series/GameOfThrones'' actress Creator/MaisieWilliams, to which said actress has stated that she'd have been very happy to play her.

* WriteWhatYouKnow: According to Druckmann, the CentralTheme of this game about the primacy of parental love came from the experience of becoming a father for the first time during the production of the game. Ellie was actually a name he and his wife considered for their daughter.

* AscendedFanon: An inversion of sorts, while the original concepts for Joel and Ellie had their last names as "Miller" and "Williams", respectively (see WhatCouldHaveBeen below), Naughty Dog eventually decided to scrap all last names from the game. This hasn't stopped [[https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcWwh4iPAOjWhBV8TD8FX7g some]] [[https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWdAsGtHpPYdHelo42zOjLA fans]] from running with the scrapped names, however.

* QueerCharacterQueerActor: Lev is portrayed by a trans man, Ian Alexander.

* DeletedScene: A 2014 'Live Performance' of ''The Last Of Us'' revealed a scene that was meant to have been TheStinger, but got cut out. The scene (acted by Troy and Ashley, not animated) [[spoiler:features Joel and Ellie some few months after settling at Tommy's, where Joel visits Ellie in her room and talks a bit about a woman Tommy has been setting him up with. Ellie still acts a little down after the outcome of their journey and Joel's lie. Joel then presents a guitar and plays a song for her, with Ellie thanking him when he's done. He gives her the guitar as a present, and she plays a few notes on it after he walks out.]]

** Ellie’s name was Lily in the early phase of development. The name was in the sequel as Lev’s birth name.

** Ellie’s name was Lily in the early phase of development.

* WriteWhatYouKnow: According to Druckmann, the CentralTheme of this game about the primacy of parental love came from the experience of becoming a father for the first time during the production of the game.

* When you first control Ellie, you can search her backpack in the inventory screen to find several items the game never alert you about, including Sam's toy, the photo she later gives Joel and a letter from her mother.

* ApprovalOfGod: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6Vx6aML-cE This]] reimagining of the opening to ''True Detective'' by way of ''The Last Of Us'' got [[https://twitter.com/Neil_Druckmann/status/454276575010095104 an approving tweet from the game's creative director]].

* WordOfSaintPaul: Henry's actor, Brandon Scott, has his own backstory for the brothers where Sam is actually Henry's half-brother, born as a result of Henry's mother being raped. Henry initially hated Sam for this and wanted to get rid of him after their mother died, but eventually realized he couldn't kill an innocent child and decided to take care of him instead. It would add a whole new layer to their relationship and [[spoiler:makes their deaths even more tragic and heartbreaking]].

** When Joel puts on a cassette that Ellie stole during the drive to Pittsburgh, it was originally going to play Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire", but the rights to the song was so expensive that ND couldn't afford it. Hence it plays Hank Williams' "I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive" instead.

* WordOfSaintPaul: Henry's actor, Brandon Scott, has his own backstory for the brothers where Sam is actually Henry's half-brother, born as a result of Henry's mother being raped. Henry initially hated Sam for this and wanted to get rid of him after their mother died, but eventually realized he couldn't kill an innocent child and decided to take care of him instead. It would add a whole new layer to their relationship and [[spoiler:makes their deaths even ''more'' tragic and heartbreaking]].

** ''VideoGame/BioShockInfinite'': Both are AAA games with a heavy focus on narrative featuring guitar playing, UnscrupulousHero protagonists voiced by Creator/TroyBaker, [[spoiler:who both lost their daughter 20 years ago]] and are now charged with escorting a girl named Elizabeth or a derivative of such, teaching her the ways of the world, [[spoiler:and eventually turning against a black woman leading a revolutionary force]].

* WordOfSaintPaul: Henry's actor, Brandon Scott, has his own backstory for the brothers where Sam is actually Henry's half-brother, born as a result of their mother being raped. Henry initially hated Sam for this and wanted to get rid of him after their mother died, but eventually realized he couldn't kill an innocent child and decided to take care of him instead. It would add a whole new layer to their relationship and [[spoiler:makes their deaths even ''more'' tragic and heartbreaking]].

** When Joel puts on a cassette that Ellie stole during the drive to Pittsburgh, it was originally going to play Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire", but the rights to the song was so expensive that ND couldn't afford it. Hence it plays Hank Williams' "I'll never get out of this world alive" instead.

** According to Troy Baker, then before Bill's character was established, Ellie was originally going to steal a ''female'' porn magazine, and when throwing it out the window would shout "Bye bye, ladies" instead of "Bye bye, dudes". Once they decided that Bill would be strongly implied to be gay, it got changed to the male porn mag instead.