Neil Druckmann will continue to “shepherd” HBO’s Last of Us adaptation after stepping down as co-showrunner

Neil Druckmann has shed more light on why he stepped back from HBO’s The Last of Us.

Speaking to Variety, the Naughty Dog exec said he’d reached the goals he’d set out with adapting the game to screen.

“I wanted to elevate The Last of Us beyond the people that have played the game,” said Druckmann. “I felt like that story could find a bigger audience for people that will never play video games.”

Druckmann decided to depart from the series once the team had entered the writers’ room for its third season.

“I looked at what’s in front of me, what the next season might look like [alongside] all the various games I’m working on [and] felt like I could better serve all of my responsibilities if I stayed at a higher level,” he explained.

“It was quite challenging to be involved as a co-showrunner on season 1 and season 2 while running a studio [alongside] working, directing, and writing a game.”

Druckmann added: “Naughty Dog is bigger than any one person. There’s been a lot of big personalities that have come through [the studio], and while I was working on the show there were a lot of people that stepped up: Matthew Gallant (game director), Claire Carré (narrative director), Kurt Margenau (game director), and Alison Mori (studio manager).

“They really allowed me to do this other thing for a while and help set up the show.”

While he’s stepped away from the showrunning side of things, Druckmann said he hopes to still contribute in other ways.

“As much as I miss getting into the weeds, working on the effects shots, giving script notes, and really getting into the details of it, I’m trying to just shepherd it.

“My hope for season 3, and what I’d like to think I can best contribute to it, is to make sure it’s as deeply faithful as season one was. So that’s where my involvement will stay at that very, very high level.”

Druckmann also shared data that suggested the series has boosted players of The Last of Us on PlayStation and PC – much like the influence of Amazon’s Fallout series.

“People have watched the show and have bought a PlayStation or PC and have played The Last Of Us,” he said. “[Its] become this gateway for them, for this medium that I love so much.”