Russian filmmaker Kantemir Balagov will direct the pilot for HBO’s adaptation of Naughty Dog’s The Last of Us, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Back in March 2020, it was announced the Naughty Dog developed title was getting its own HBO series and was being helmed by Chernobyl’s Craig Mazin and executive produced and written by Neil Druckmann. It was initially thought Chernobyl director Johan Renck would direct, but due to a scheduling conflict, Renck has bowed out. Balagov made his debut as a director with the film Closeness at the Cannes Film Festival, where he received the prize FIPRESCI. In 2019, Balagov received the Cannes Best Director Award and FIPRESCI prize for the film Beanpole, which was also Russia’s entry for Best International Feature Film at the 92nd Academy Awards. Druckmann and Mazin will executive produce the series alongside Carolyn Strauss (Chernobyl, Game of Thrones), Naughty Dog’s Evan Wells, and PlayStation Productions’ Qizilbash and Carter Swan. Set 20 years after the destruction of modern civilization, the series will focus on the events of the original game.
