Legendary Hollywood director Steven Spielberg sent a letter to the creators of HBO’sThe Last of Usthat caused excitement behind the scenes.
The Last of Us, which finished its first season earlier this year as one of HBO’s top series, has garnered critical acclaim and is working on a second season. The zombie drama based on the popular video game chronicles the journey ofPedro Pascal’s Joel and Bella Ramsey’s Ellieacross a landscape filled with good people, questionable people, and mushroom-spawned zombie monsters. But much of the enthusiasm for the show focuses not on its horror elements, of which there are many, but the human plot lines of the series, including its 3rd episode, “Long Long Time,” which had both fans and critics singing praise.
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DuringThe Hollywood Reporter’s recent Director Roundtable, the director of episode 3, Peter Hoar, revealed thatThe Last of Usseries co-creator Craig Mazinhad received a letter from Spielberg. The filmmaker – known for a decades-long career directing and producing some of the top films of the last 50 years – praised the episode and series. Mazin subsequently shared the letter with Hoar and the episode’s stars, Nick Offerman and Murray Bartlett, and cinematographer Eben Bolter.
The Last of Usepisode 3, written by co-creator Craig Mazin and directed by Hoar, follows the love story of Bill (Offerman) and Franks (Bartlett) across the decades following the zombie apocalypse as they navigate a life of solitude, occasional human, and zombie, attacks, and the realities of post-apocalyptic living. While the episode immediately had fans and critics in tears, its effect on the acclaimed director prompted Spielberg to write Mazin. When Mazin shared the letter, Hoar says, “Basically, a whole group of middle-aged men started squealing because their idol had realized who they were. I think he probably knew who everyone else was, but he didn’t know who I was. And now he’s probably forgotten.”
According toScreenRant, this isn’t the first time that Spielberg has written to his Hollywood peers on a job well done, saying it’s a common practice of the acclaimed director in recent years. Spielberg has also written congratulatory letters to the creators behindHBO’s hit seriesSuccessionand Netflix’sMo. Spielberg has also touched base and offered advice to up-and-coming directors, including Joseph Sargent, who directed the sequel to Spielberg’sJaws, titledJaws: The Revenge.
