/https://tf-cmsv2-smithsonianmag-media.s3.amazonaws.com/filer_public/5d/76/5d76dc0a-1d19-402e-9d40-f2dc84932838/smithmag-deepsealifenorway-v2_web.jpg?#)
'The Last of Us' Started Out as a Story Pitch Rejected by George Romero
Neil Druckmann's original zombie story, which would later evolve into The Last of Us, started as a pitch that was initially rejected by George Romero.
Neil Druckmann is on top of the world right now. He created and wrote the highly popular The Last of Us video games, and now he's getting to see his world adapted for the small screen with The Last of Us TV series on Max, starring Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey. At first glance, The Last of Us is yet another in a long line of zombie stories. With The Walking Dead and all of its spin-offs out there, one more zombie story, either as a game or a show, isn't all that attention-grabbing, but Druckmann found a way to set his version apartthanks to the compelling characters of Joel and Ellie.
