It’s a shame that not everyone knows about this 2-hour and 30-minute event, and it’s unfortunate because Naughty Dog kept the most significant surprise off screen. Here are ten things you might not have known about The Last of Us: One Night Live.
10 Joel’s Girlfriend, Esther
Esther was a minor featured character of this musical event. In fact, she was introduced as Joel’s love interest. After running from St. Mary Hospital, Joel and Ellie settled in Jackson with Tommy, and that’s how Joel and Esther met for the first time. Tommy linked his brother up with her, and they had some kind of long-distance relationship. “I think she lived out by the dams, by the electric dams, and they kind of had a commuter relationship,” co-writer Haley Gross told The Washington Post.
9 Esther’s Death
Esther’s death might not be mentioned during One Night Live, but it’s still worth noting that Naughty Dog had written many ideas about her character and did their best to feature her in Part 2. After learning how to use a rifle from Tommy, Ellie and Joel head to Esther’s place in a small town located ’two hours drive away from Jackson,’ only to find that she was already infected. Unfortunately, they decided to scrap it because it does not progress Ellie’s character arc.
8 Tess, Abby’s Father, & Ethan’s Characters Were Played By The Same Person
Because of the absence of the characters’ initial voice-over actors, Annie Wersching, the actress behind Tess, had to portray both the head surgeon (Abby’s father) and Ethan (Marlene’s sidekick who arrested and watched over Joel).
Speaking of Wersching, The Last of Us was her debut in video games. Before that, she was known for her portrayal of FBI special agent Renee Walker in the television series 24.
7 Ashley Johnson’s Minor Blooper
Reenacting a scene from such an intense video game like The Last of Us is hard to do, so it makes sense in some way if the actors messed up some parts. Ashley Johnson, who played as Ellie, was unable to find the prop gun for the ‘I Feel Sick’ cutscene. She even messed up some lines and improvised them during the car ride with Joel and the emotional scene at the ranch.
6 The ‘Epilogue Of Epilogue’
As mentioned above, Naughty Dog did set up a handful of surprises off camera after the credits rolled. This surprise, that Neil Druckmann described as ’the Epilogue of Epilogue’ and ‘a way of saying goodbye to Joel and Ellie,’ was set a couple of weeks after settling in Jackson. Ultimately, this scene is used in Part 2. This is the scene where Joel heads over to Ellie’s room to give her a beautiful guitar and teach her how to play it, which leads us to the next point.
5 Changed Dialogue During The Guitar Scene
After playing an emotional rendition of Future Days by Pearl Jam to Ellie during One Night Live, the latter commented, “That was beautiful, Joel,” while wiping a few tears away. On the other hand, in the final product, Ellie comments, “Well, that didn’t suck” to Joel’s singing. It’s unsure why Naughty Dog decided to use this line instead because it ruined the heartwarming bonding moment, but maybe it fits Ellie’s sarcastic nature better in some way.
4 Savage Starlight Poster
Still from this scene in the musical, there is a poster of Savage Starlight hanging in Ellie’s room. It’s a blatant Easter egg to the same banner that was seen earlier in the game.
Speaking of Easter eggs, the devs indeed love putting mysterious references and hidden allusions in their games. One of the most common Easter egg you can find in both games is a plethora of nods to the Uncharted series.
3 Gustavo Santaolalla’s Performance
The man you see performing after the One Night Live prologue is not just an ordinary performer. He is Gustavo Santaolalla, an Oscar-winning Argentinian musician and composer known for his work in The Last of Us and its Part 2 sequel. In fact, he has a special cameo in the last game as an NPC playing a ukulele in Jackson. As HBO gears up for The Last of Us series adaptation, Santaolalla is set to compose the original score for the series.
2 Marlene’s Alternate Death
During One Night Live, Marlene intercepted Joel at the surgery room when he tried to take Ellie from the doctors. Then Joel proceeded to kill her before finishing off the rest of the doctors, including Abby’s father, Jerry. In the final product, Joel still had to go through several hospital levels before entering the parking lot and encountering Marlene. The final conversation between the two resulted in her death.
1 Jerry’s Alternate Death
Jerry might not make an appearance during One Night Live, but it’s still worth noting that Naughty Dog actually planned a different death for his character. As mentioned above, the scene was a lot more gruesome than it already was: Joel ended up killing everyone in the room, including the defenseless doctors. In the final cut, Joel killed Jerry, and it’s up to the players to spare the rest of the doctors.
NEXT: The Last Of Us Part 2: 10 Tips For Taking Out Humans
