The Last of Us: Jackson from Part 2 Set Explained by Director

SPOILER ALERT: This interview contains spoilers from Episode 6 of The Last of Us, streaming now on HBO Max.

The HBO series The Last of Us just made a big jump to the video game sequel The Last of Us: Part II, which fans will surely recognize: The snowy settlement in Jackson, Wyoming in the Part II. begins was faithfully recreated in Episode 6 – although it did not appear in the original game.

It’s the first major connection to “Part II” the show has made. Without spoiling the events of the sequel, the wintry town of Jackson is a key location during the game’s opening hours. In the original The Last of Us, players learn about Jackson from Tommy (Gabriel Luna) and Maria (Rutina Wesley), but they mostly stay in the hydroelectric power station camp and only see Jackson from afar. The section of the game also takes place in the fall, not in the winter.

HBO has already renewed The Last of Us for Season 2, which seems like a perfect opportunity to return to this established Jackson set for the sequel’s storyline. However, this version of Jackson was actually created in Canmore, a small town 50 miles west of Calgary in Alberta, Canada, where much of The Last of Us was filmed.

Sarajevo, Bosnia-born filmmaker Jasmila Žbanić made her TV directorial debut with Episode 6 titled Kin. Her most recent film, Quo Vadis, Aida?, was nominated for Best International Feature Film at the 2021 Academy Awards. It dramatized the harrowing events of the Srebrenica massacre in 1995, when more than 8,000 Bosnian men were killed during the Bosnian War of the 1990s. Žbanić’s experience of surviving the wartime siege of Sarajevo influenced how she directed the episode in which Joel (Pedro Pascal) is reunited with his brother Tommy in the burgeoning Jackson settlement.

“There was no electricity, no food, nothing. But thanks to solidarity and the restructuring of the city, we survived. You have to start from scratch. For me, that experience was something I felt very close to Jackson,” Žbanić said, adding that The Last of Us creators Neil Druckmann and Craig Mazin were interested in her background on the episode.

With diversityŽbanić talked about the sub-freezing temperatures in Canmore, filmed the highly emotional reunion between Joel and Tommy and why working with the keepers on set was “heavenly”.

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How familiar were you with the video game? Have you watched videos of The Last of Us: Part II to understand what Jackson looked like?

I didn’t know anything about the game when I got the job, so I really needed to educate myself on what it is. I bought the game and tried to play it, and then I watched a lot of YouTube videos of people playing it. I’ve watched the part about my episode a million times. I’ve talked a lot with Neil about the whole vibe of the city and what he had in mind and what’s not there either. There are some elements that Craig added to the whole piece. I also spoke to a lot of players. I always ask, “What do you want to see? What do you expect from the game?” They would say to keep that emotion and atmosphere. Those two things were like a checklist for me. I would check every scene to see if they are there.

Did you talk to creators Druckmann and Mazin about why they wanted Jackson from Part II in this episode?

I didn’t really talk about it because it came very naturally to me. We talked a lot about surviving the war in Sarajevo in the 90s. I think for Craig and Neil it was interesting that I lived in a place that was like Jackson in a way, because we were surrounded by the Serbian army, we were constantly bombed. We had to be vigilant, we had to survive, we had to learn to live without everything, without civilization. There was no electricity, no food, nothing. But we managed to survive because of the solidarity and the way the city was restructured. You have to start from scratch. For me, this experience was something that I felt very close to Jackson. It’s a community that works and I find it really beautiful and hopeful because I genuinely believe I’ve survived even the worst of disasters, like wars. People are able to keep society. You are not always the enemy of the other. So I was really lucky to be directing this episode, which really said something that I deeply believe in.

Joel and Tommy’s reunion was so sweet, but their relationship is getting very rocky. What direction did you give them to represent this up and down brotherly relationship?

We were very fortunate because we had the opportunity to rehearse before we were on set. The set was quite difficult because of the cold weather. Sometimes it was even -15 degrees Celsius, so very, very cold. Special attention was paid to this scene with Tommy and Joel. They would read it, trade it, repeat it, and try different things. They also suggested some changes, so it went really deep for both of them in every scene. It was so nice because it’s a very long scene in the shoe store. It’s a very emotional scene for Pedro. I filmed him second; First we filmed Gabriel, and then I noticed that Pedro cried on every repeat. He wasn’t in front of the camera, but he cried because he gave his partner everything so that he could act. This is something very special. It’s so generous of an actor to do it so deeply. I was amazed by Pedro’s talent.

How did the “I’m definitely not your dad” scene between Pedro and Bella go?

It was so emotional. Sometimes I cried behind the camera because they were so honest and beautiful. This relationship is so touching. I really like that it changes from start to finish. It’s just one episode but she has so many changes in her relationship which is really awesome.

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There’s the flashback to Joel and Sarah putting up Christmas decorations, which wasn’t in the original game. Where is this scene from?

I think the moment came after Craig and I talked about certain things, like Joel always tries not to connect his feelings towards Ellie with emotions he has towards Sarah for burying her. It’s really hard for him when they come up. Ellie just brings it all out. Because of that kind of Christmas spirit in Jackson, songs he’s hearing, all the lights and that sense of normalcy, he can’t hold it anymore. it’s over This is where he begins to connect: “Okay, these emotions are real, and it’s for them.”

With the freezing temperatures and the many animals, were there any obstacles to shooting?

Look, I’m from Bosnia, from a very crazy film industry. We make one film a year. So we don’t have great professionals like America. So nothing was a challenge for me, it was a gift. For example, I’ve talked to people who were dog trainers and they said to me, “Create a script about what you want your dog to do.” I’d say, “One leg up, that face, how wide should the dog’s mouth be?” open.” Everything. Then they would come with it and the dog would know for sure. I joked that it wouldn’t be possible in Bosnia. You would have a dog, and when the dog is angry, it is angry. Something like that does not exist. For me it was not a challenge, but an absolute pleasure to work with such professionals. The horse related people were amazing. You simply tell them, “I want the first horse to be a meter away from the second, then three of them.” They would do it and keep it throughout the scene. For me it was just heaven to work like that.

In the game, Joel falls off a balcony and is impaled by a piece of metal, but in this episode he is stabbed. Why was that changed?

I got it in the script and I really liked it because it was more subtle. Ellie thinks they’ve made it, and then it’s a shock. Otherwise it would be over immediately. I really liked how Craig wrote it. They travel, she is hopeful, they move on together – and then it’s a shock.

And the other big change is that Tommy and Maria are expecting a child. How do you think this will end for them in the apocalypse?

We wanted to convey that sense of hope that this society has. Life doesn’t stop. It goes on and on; Even in the worst of circumstances, life goes on. For me, a really important touch is that Maria is pregnant. It makes Tommy’s decision that much, much harder that he accepted taking Ellie. It makes everything difficult, with more drama for Tommy.

This interview has been edited and abridged.

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