This tiny change made David that much creepier in HBO’s The Last of Us
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This week’s episode of HBO’s The Last of Us was exciting. It is entitled “When We Are In Need”. The Episode that really cranks things up a notch. Be warned that we’ll be getting spoilers in Episode 8, so look away if you haven’t already seen it.
Episode 8 introduced us to David, who is one of the most terrifying villains not only in The Last of Us but in gaming as a whole. He’s a really creepy guy who came across in the game as someone with possessive and even pedophilic tendencies, but there are some very subtle changes in the HBO adaptation that make him even creepier.
And that might come as a bit of a surprise, but the changes don’t affect David himself; they are with Ellie.
When Ellie first attacks David and James with the deer in the original game, she is very skilled with the gun. She confidently points it at both men and clearly knows her stuff. Even David says so.
Her goal is firm and it’s very clear that she’s not messing around. Up to this point in the game, we’ve seen the game get Ellie very good with the gun, and we know she could kill both of them outright if she wanted to.
On the show, however, Ellie actually comes across as a little weaker. Portrayed by Bella Ramsey, Ellie looks a lot less stable with the gun. The official HBO podcast for The Last of Us features showrunner Craig Mazin, series creator Neil Druckmann and voice actor Troy Baker all confirming this was intentional. They wanted to give the impression that while Ellie seems to have the upper hand over these guys, David is the one in control all the time.
Additionally, David continues to play the role of the nice guy and sensible, caring father figure who tries to lure Ellie into a false sense of security. By making her believe that she is in control, he tries to convince her that staying with him would be her best move. He’s obsessed with the idea of owning her and getting her to join his group, which is also clear in the game, but the show shows it much better How David is actually trying to achieve this goal.
David was scary enough in the game, but by intentionally showing the audience that Ellie is actually not in control makes the episode even scarier.
https://twinfinite.net/2023/03/this-tiny-change-made-david-so-much-scarier-in-hbos-the-last-of-us/ This tiny change made David that much creepier in HBO’s The Last of Us
