The Last of Us<\/em><\/a> has also wreaked emotional havoc on the cast\u2019s respective family members.<\/p>\n The HBO series \u2014 based on the Naughty Dog video game of the same name \u2014 premiered in January 2023, introducing viewers to the dynamic pair of Joel (Pedro Pascal<\/strong>) and Ellie (Bella Ramsey<\/strong>).<\/p>\n Pascal, admittedly, had no idea about the video game until after he took on the role. However, his nephews had an incredible reaction when hearing that their family member would be Joel.<\/p>\n \u201cI didn\u2019t know about the game before I got the job. Then I got the job, and found out very quickly about the game,\u201d he said on The Graham Norton Show<\/em><\/a> in March 2023. \u201cIt needed to be explained to me.\u201d<\/p>\n After nabbing the role, Pascal called his sister Javiera Balmeceda<\/strong>, who is a mother of two teenage boys, Bruno and Pedro.<\/p>\n \u201cI was on speaker when she answered. She was dropping them off at school,\u201d he recalled. \u201cI said, \u2018Well there\u2019s this job offer \u2026 or opportunity that is based on a video game.\u2019 They\u2019re like, \u2018What is it?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n He remembered them yelling \u201cyou better get that job,\u201d when hearing which game it was.<\/p>\n Pascal\u2019s nephews aren\u2019t the only ones who\u2019ve had some thoughts about the show. Keep scrolling for more:<\/p>\n Luna plays Tommy on The Last of Us<\/em> and while he\u2019s become a fan favorite among viewers, the actor\u2019s 92-year-old grandmother was not impressed by the season 2 premiere.<\/p>\n \u201cI flew my mom, my 92-year-old grandmother, my baby sister and my cousin into Los Angeles for the premiere of the show a couple of weeks ago,\u201d Luna recalled during an April 2025 appearance on Virgin Radio UK. \u201cWe were watching the screening and there\u2019s this very intense moment in the first episode, and I was like, \u2018God, I hope she\u2019s OK, it\u2019s so loud and violent.\u2019 I turned to my grandmother, just completely knocked out, totally asleep.\u201d<\/p>\n Dever made her The Last of Us<\/em> debut as Abby during season 2<\/a>. She told Variety<\/em><\/a> in March 2025 that she played the video game with her dad.<\/p>\n You have successfully subscribed.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n \u201cIt\u2019s such a cool thing to get to share this with my dad,\u201d she said. \u201cIt was a very cool bonding experience between the two of us because we played the first game together and then I played the second game with him up until we started playing Abby and I, kind of, bailed because that game is long and I\u2019m a bad gamer.\u201d<\/p>\n Dever continued, \u201cHe was really excited when I got the call about playing Abby. It\u2019s always going to be cool to share stuff with my family but particularly this, it\u2019s a real joy to get to share that with him.\u201d<\/p>\n Pascal joked about his nephew\u2019s reaction to his role as Joel in a separate March 2023 interview with IGN<\/a>, joking that they \u201cturned into demons\u201d after finding out.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\nGabriel Luna<\/h3>\n
Kaitlyn Dever<\/h3>\n
Thank You!<\/h3>\n
![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/GettyImages-2204162418-The-Last-of-Us-Cast-Family.jpg?w=1000&quality=55&strip=all\")
<\/div>Pedro Pascal<\/h3>\n