The Last Of Us Nearly Had DLC Based On Ellie’s Mom

The Last of Us has taken over all entertainment spheres recently due to the new HBO series. While the show is a faithful adaptation of the game, it has added a lot of new things to the lore. One such thing is going to be a story about Ellie’s mother, which was originally going to be a DLC. 

Neil Druckman revealed that he wrote a story about Ellie’s mom Anna and wanted to make it a DLC. But, this plan fell apart, and as a result, we will see it on the HBO show.

Good video game adaptations have not always been a strong suit of Hollywood. Over the years, we have got some terrible movies and TV shows based on video game IPs. However, the quality has improved in the last few years or so and it’s obvious to see. 

A big reason for that has been the increase in TV show adaptations of popular video games. Sure, there have been a few misses, but we have got amazing shows like Cyberpunk: Edgerunners and Arcane. The Last of Us is the newest entry in this pipeline, and it raises the standards even more.

Since its premiere, the show has taken the world by storm, setting an HBO record in the 2nd episode. It has also increased the sales of The Last of Us Part 1 by a huge margin. Neil Druckman, the creator of the franchise, has revealed an episode will contain a story originally meant for the game. 

The Last of Us Episode 2 netted 5.7 million viewers on its first night, up 22% from the series debut. This marks the largest second week audience growth ever for an HBO series. Episode 1 is now tracking at 18 million viewers from its first week. pic.twitter.com/PkOQUBp7gO

— IGN (@IGN) January 24, 2023

While talking to Variety, the series co-creator gave us some interesting info about an upcoming episode. He answered a question asking what he was excited to do in the show he didn’t get to do in the game. The Last of Us director said it is a story about Ellie’s mom.

Druckman says that this sequence featuring Ellie’s mother Anna appears very late in the season. He explains how he originally wrote this as an animated short story after The Last of Us had already come out. Afterward, plans to release it as a DLC was made but never came to fruition:

What were you most excited to get to do in the show that you didn’t have in the game?

Druckmann: The one that shows up very late in the season is Ellie’s mom. I had written a short story after we had shipped the game already. It was supposed to be an animated short, but it fell apart and didn’t come to be. There was a moment where we almost made it as DLC, but it fell apart.”

Neil Druckman further explains how excited co-creator Craig Mazin was after hearing this idea. But, what really makes this story beautiful and cathartic is the casting of Anna. Ashley Johnson, who plays the role of Ellie in the games, has been cast as her mother in the show.

This really makes the whole thing come full circle. Druckman also believes the way the show brought this tale to life was poetic. In the interview, he called it beautiful, and we can’t wait to see it:

 In our conversations, I brought it up to Craig and he was immediately excited by it, or as he would say ‘activated.’ We brought it to life in the most beautiful, poetic way, which is Ashley Johnson playing Ellie’s mom and she was the original actor for Ellie.

So, even though we are not seeing this story as a Last of Us animated short or a DLC, we will see it in the show. Ashley Johnson playing Ellie’s mom just makes it even better, as she is the model Ellie is based on. Hopefully, we will see this scene sooner than later.