6 Actors Who Almost Starred in The Last of Us, Ranked from Absolute No to Perfect Choice

The Last of Us’ storyline is what gets the most of the attention from the original video game’s fans, though some are still not over alleged casting mistakes.

Ever since the series’ first season dropped back in 2023, lots of complaints and accusations have been sent to the home address of Bella Ramsey who in The Last of Us portrays Ellie; things weren’t that complicated with Pedro Pascal, though at some point he did get a couple of slamming comments too.

It makes everything even harder for those concerned fans when remembered that The Last of Us’ leading cast could have turned out to be quite different — however, some other contenders would probably be questioned even more.

Here’s a list of the show’s potential candidates that back in the day lost the roles to Bella Ramsey and Pedro Pascal.

6. Mahershala Ali — Joel Miller

If someone wasn’t fine with Pedro Pascal as Joel, they probably would thank him for the role now.

It’s not a secret that Mahershala Ali’s filmography and reputation in Hollywood speaks for itself and he would have been good in any project he’s offered, but The Last of Us’ fans would still have trouble perceiving him as Joel.

However, even with that much physical difference from the game’s character, Ali is believed to have made it to the top of the list; he eventually competed with Pedro Pascal only, losing the role to the latter.

5. Matthew McConaughey — Joel Miller

True Detective’s actor was one of the first to pop up in Craig Mazin’s mind when it came to choosing the actor for Joel’s role.

“I did talk to Matthew. I can’t say that it was serious, it was more of just like, ‘Hey, here’s something we can talk about’… It’s one of those things where I’m sure there’s an alternate universe where it’s a different guy. Look, Matthew McConaughey is an amazing actor. I’m sure it would’ve been great, but it would’ve been different and I like the one that we made”, the creator revealed in an interview with Variety back in the day.

Eventually, it was McConaughey who turned down the role due to a busy schedule, and Mazin quickly moved on to the next candidate, reaching out to Pedro Pascal’s agent and actually not expecting the actor to give him a reply anyway.

Apparently, Pascal didn’t waste much time and landed the role.

4. Sophia Lillis — Ellie

It and I Am Not Okay With This’ actress isn’t quite new to some horror-ish stories in both the TV and movie industry, which is why Lillis was also eyed for the role of Ellie before Bella Ramsey got it.

The actress would have received a quick ‘yes’ from The Last of Us’ fans not only due to her strong dramatical skills, but also because she does look similar to Ellie from the video game.

3. Josh Brolin — Joel Miller

Marvel’s villainous warlord, Josh Brolin could have also become the TV adaptation’s Joel Miller, but for some reason got out of the competition.

Even though there might be some age difference between the actor and the video game’s Joel, Brolin would still get everyone’s support had he landed the role.

In fact, even The Last of Us’ original voice actor Troy Baker was one of those to manifest Brolin’s appearance in the HBO series.

“I think on its face, literally, Josh Brolin would be a knockout choice, but I don’t know if I would walk away learning something different about Joel”, he said in an interview with Collider.

2. Maisie Williams — Ellie

Another Game of Thrones vet was one of the first contenders for Ellie’s role, but things didn’t work out for Maisie Williams in a different way.

The actress, who is famous for the role of Arya Stark in Game of Thrones, got a call from The Last of Us’ creators years before the show entered its production phase, potentially securing the leading role.

However, several years passed and the series’ first season wasn’t getting closer to its production wrap, so Williams was no longer considered just because she obviously looked older than a 14-year-old.

1. Kaitlyn Dever — Ellie

The actress eventually made it to the show after all, now portraying Abby in the ongoing second season, but such an outcome is still the main reason for The Last of Us’ fans to keep talking about a major miscasting.

Dever was initially eyed for Ellie’s role, which is what could have received a 100% approval from the video game players, considering how alike the actress and the game character look.

However, the show’s creators still considered Bella Ramsey a better choice for Ellie, accidentally causing a major confrontation with its audiences.