HBO's 'The Last of Us' Director Says You Need to 'Trick' Viewers to Watchg a Gay Love Story

Contents:

• HBO’S ‘THE LAST OF US’ DIRECTOR SAYS YOU NEED TO ‘TRICK’ VIEWERS TO WATCHG A GAY LOVE STORY
• JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS' KEV MAXEN BE FIRST MALE COACH TO COME OUT AS GAY MAJOR U.S. SPORTS
• Y, ELLIE HAS ALWAYS BEEN GAY ‘THE LAST OF US’
• WAS BILL GAY THE LAST OF US GAME? RELATNSHIP WH FRANK EXPLAED

HBO’S ‘THE LAST OF US’ DIRECTOR SAYS YOU NEED TO ‘TRICK’ VIEWERS TO WATCHG A GAY LOVE STORY

Episo three of HBO's "The Last of Us" sparked homophobic backlash om some viewers.

Homophobia has long been an issue the gamg muny and larger fandoms. The latt episo of HBO's vio-game adaptatn "The Last of Us" has been wily praised — but 's also spired fierce backlash, shg a light on what have been persistent issu the gamg muny and larger cultural fandoms: homophobia and anti-LGBTQ iology. Joel, played by Pedro Pasl the TV seri, is charged wh rtg an immune teenage girl Ellie, played by Bella Ramsey, across the US the hop of fdg a 's episo, tled "Long, Long Time, " picts a gay romance between Bill, played by Nick Offerman, and Frank, played by Murray Bartlett.

JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS' KEV MAXEN BE FIRST MALE COACH TO COME OUT AS GAY MAJOR U.S. SPORTS

"Plenty more reviews acced the episo of phg LGBT "propaganda" or a "gay agenda. "Insir even received an email om a rear rponse to s story about the episo beg review-bombed, which further exemplifi this homophobia. "The rponse om some homophobic fans to Sunday's episo nearly a after "gamergate, " a far-right onle movement agast "progrsivism" gamg, built on racism, sexism, homophobia, and of "gamergate" uld be seen cricism agast "The Last of Us Part II, " the 2020 vio game sequel, which Ellie's sexualy is further explored.

She told CNN that, while playg the game for the first time, her “gaydar pged” when Bill mentned his “partner, ” but by the time she read Frank’s suici note, she wonred if she’d misunrstood – maybe the pair were jt bs partners and nothg more, she thought.

” Riley MacLeod of the Washgton Post noted that however movg their story was to viewers, Bill and Frank still “fall to well-worn gay ath trop” – a gay man phg another gay man, sickened by an unknown disease, a wheelchair; an image often shown storyl about HIV-posive characters – and are seemgly the “only two queer people the world.

Y, ELLIE HAS ALWAYS BEEN GAY ‘THE LAST OF US’

A cric for Logo TV wrote that the game rced Bill to a “punchle” after Ellie jok about a gay porn magaze she fds. Fanbyte reported on Bill’s stg the TV seri as a “gay (the show) will probably bury. ” Even the wily praised 2022 remake of the game was a “remr of s ‘bury your gays’ romance, ” said Ja Kg of The Gamer, an article that year.

WAS BILL GAY THE LAST OF US GAME? RELATNSHIP WH FRANK EXPLAED

(The “bury your gays” trope refers to the equent killg off of gay characters media. “To get almost two full s wh someone you love is a gift, and to get a time of so much ath and stctn feels even more special, so ’s really nice to see happen for gay people, ” she told CNN. HBO’s h vio-game adaptatn seri The Last of Us took an unexpected tour to gay terrory s most recent episo, focg on a buddg romance between the characters played by actors Nick Offerman and Murry Bartlett.

In a recent terview, the episo director said viewers sometim need to be tricked to watchg a gay love story. Director Peter Hoar, who is openly gay, spoke to the science-foced se Inverse about makg the show. Hoar directed the recent Brish miseri It’s a S, which followed the liv of a group of gay men at the height of the AIDS epimic.

The show is already garnerg high praise for s third episo, which lved ep to a si story wh two gay characters at s re. Several more gay characters are sttered among the game’s st, and future episos — and seasons — will see the h characters realized live-actn for the first time. Ellie Image via Nghty Dog That’s right, the lead character The Last of Us is part of the gay muny.