Was Joel Right to Save Ellie? ‘The Last of Us’ Most Burning Question, Answered by Craig Mazin
The shocking hospital massacre in The Last of Us’ season 1 finale was the main reason for Joel and Ellie’s eventual fallout and one of the show’s biggest controversies. Here’s what The Last of Us’ creators had to say about the matter.
Things between Ellie and Joel in The Last of Us’ season 2 were just about to get back to normal when Abby showed up with a golf club, making the show’s fans still reflect on what the characters’ relationship would have been like if that plot twist had never happened.
In a way, this was also mirroring Ellie’s thinking of what the entire world would have looked like hadn’t Joel saved her from the Salt Lake City hospital where she was about to get killed for the infection cure.
Eventually, a lost opportunity of helping with the vaccine made Ellie consider Joel’s deed as a personal betrayal, though not many fans might have shared the same opinion. Neither did The Last of Us’ creators.
‘The Last of Us’ Neil Druckmann and Craig Mazin Weigh In on Joel’s Crucial Season 1 Decision
The show’s second season proceeded with opposing Ellie and Joel even more, with the former accusing her father figure of depriving the entire world of the much-needed vaccine and the latter stating that he just couldn’t let her die because he loved her.
It’s safe to say The Last of Us’ fans were mostly on Joel’s side all along, and it seems like the series’ creators agree about Joel having a reason to do so anyway.
“We have different opinions about this. I believe Joel was right. If I were in Joel's position, I hope I would be able to do what he did to save my daughter”, Druckmann revealed in an interview with IGN not long before the series’ second season premiered back in April.
“That's so interesting, because I think that if I were in Joel's position, I probably would have done what he did. But I'd like to think that I wouldn't. That's the interesting push and pull of the morality of it. And that's why the ending of the first game is so provocative and so wonderful. It just doesn't let you off the hook as a player”, Mazin added, also highlighting that he hopes he would never have to make such a choice in the future.
Would They Even Make a Cure After All?
Another controversial matter that fans couldn’t stop talking about is that the hospital staff's plan to make a cure thanks to Ellie’s immunity eventually could have failed, leaving the world without the vaccine and Joel without Ellie.
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This has become one of the strongest points for Joel’s defence, but the creators never considered such a dubious option.
“All I can say is, our intent was that they would have made a cure — that makes the most interesting philosophical question for what Joel does”, Druckmann said during a conversation on the “Secret Symbols” podcast recently.
When Will ‘The Last of Us’ Season 3 Be Released?
The show’s next instalment will likely air on Max sometime in 2027.
