Naughty Dog's The Last of Us is being made into a movie with Sony working alongside Screen Gems to bring the cinematic game to the big screen, Deadline reports.
Studio directors Evan Wells and Christophe Balestra will be involved along with The Last of Us' producers Neil Druckmann and Bruce Staley. Evil Dead director Sam Raimi has been roped in to helm the movie.
Screen Gems President Clint Culpepper said:
"Screen Gems’ Brian Dukes and Eric Ling brought this game to my attention insisting we go after it, and when I saw the quality of the storytelling, I knew the audience for this project was far greater than just the gaming community and that Neil Druckmann must write the screenplay. I am thrilled that SCEA’s Riley Russell was able to get me in front of Neil and Evan Wells to plead my case. Sam and his team at Ghost House round out the perfect team to help realize Neil’s vision.”
Wells added that the combination of Screen Gem and Raimi's Ghost House production studio is, “a perfect fit. Since our game released last June, we’ve talked with many companies about making a film, but we couldn’t have found better partners who share our creative vision and high standards."
Deadline comments:
"Hardened survivor Joel teams with young and capable companion Ellie to journey through a radically transformed world some 20 years after an infectious pandemic ravages humanity. The game has won numerous awards and has been a big seller since its release last summer."
Sony registered multiple The Last of Us movie web domains in November of last year.
Naughty Dog made headlines earlier this week when creative director Amy Hennig left the studio with reports suggesting she was forced out by Wells and Balestra.