With “Succession” heading into its final season later this month, “The Last Of Us” and its swift popularity may replace it, for a time, as HBO‘s show de l’instant. Would that surprise anyone? Two episodes remain in its first season, but “The Last Of Us” is already a major hit for the network, breaking all sorts of viewership records. But believe it or not, “The Last Of Us” almost looked very different in a couple of ways.  
READ MORE: ‘The Last Of Us’ Co-Showrunner Craig Mazin On The HBO Show’s Future: “There’s Really No Way To Tell The Story Of The Second Game In One Season”
The Direct has the scoop there, in a new interview with show actor Jeffrey Pierce. Pierce plays the rebel soldier Perry in the series but voiced Tommy in the original games. When The Direct asked Pierce if he had any hope of reprising his role as Tommy in the HBO show, Pierce replied, “No, not in the course of the HBO show.” Why’s that? Well, as the adaptation progressed in development, it became clear A-list actors were wanted in the major roles. “There have been a couple of different iterations over time,” Pierce explained. “There was a movie at one point. There was a motion-capture cinematic animated series at one point. And both of those are things that I thought, ‘I got a pretty good shot at being involved to some degree.’”
But when names like Mahershala Ali and Pedro Pascal came up as potential actors to play Joel, the series lead, Pierce knew he had no shot of playing a live-action version of Tommy. “But that was a long time ago and a lot of white beard in the past,” Pierce continued. “So… I think initially they had talked to Mahershala Ali about playing Joel, which is an obvious cue that I’m not gonna play Tommy… And when they cast Pedro [Pascal], I knew like, yeah, that was certainly not going to happen regardless, I’m older than Pedro Pascal. So I was not under harboring any illusions about that, for sure.” Tommy’s role eventually went to Gabriel Luna.
Pierce sounds content about having the role of Perry, though. Not in the original games, Perry is one of several deviations the HBO series takes from its source material. But those shifts haven’t hurt the critical reception to the series, which has already been renewed for a second season. What other changes await in the future of “The Last Of Us”? Tune into the rest of the show’s first season as it premieres on HBO this month.