Kaitlyn Dever Started Filming ‘Last of Us’ Murder Scene Three Days After Her Mom’s Funeral; Creators Changed Shot Order and Told Her to ‘Take All the Time You Need’

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WARNING: This narrative unveils plot points from Season 2, Episode 2 of HBO’s “The Last of Us,” currently available on Max. Proceed with caution if you wish to avoid spoilers.

Kaitlyn Dever shared in an interview with Entertainment Weekly that she began filming her character Abby on “The Last of Us” Season 2 only three days following her mother’s funeral. To add to the emotional intensity, the initial scenes Dever filmed for the show involved her tormenting Pedro Pascal’s character Joel, eventually leading to his demise.

Dever described the scene as both emotionally intense and challenging from a staging perspective. There were numerous elements to manage and obstacles to overcome. In all candor, he admitted that the days preceding this scene were extremely difficult for him.

At the age of 39, Dever’s mom was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer and fought courageously against it for 14 years. Sadly, she lost her life in February 2024, only a few weeks before Dever was due to start filming “The Last of Us.

Dever mentioned that he lost his mother just a few weeks prior to filming this particular scene on ‘The Last of Us’. His mother’s funeral occurred only three days before the start of shooting, leaving him feeling somewhat detached or disoriented.

To make Bella Devereau feel at ease during filming, the creative team behind “The Last of Us” went out of their way. They modified the shooting schedule so that scenes requiring her presence would not start too soon after her mother’s funeral. As reported by Entertainment Weekly, Bella herself chose the day she felt most comfortable for filming Abby’s significant scene with Joel. The production was kept private to minimize the number of people present to only those who were essential.

Craig Mazin, one of the creators, emphasized, ‘Go at your pace. Take as much time as you need.’ He explained that while he values the show deeply, it’s just a TV show. He wouldn’t want to intrude on someone’s personal grief over losing their parent, more so when the show itself is about dealing with loss.

Devver commented, “Due to my current life situation, I couldn’t perform my regular acting tasks as usual. This was quite intriguing to me since I had been a bit concerned. Typically, when I have a monologue like this, I memorize it three weeks ahead of time. However, I took a different approach and I believe it greatly benefited the character. It allowed me to simply let go and not overthink it because the words on the script were already so impactful.

The brutal killing of Joel bears an uncanny resemblance to a scene from “The Last of Us Part II” video game. In this scenario, Abby, played by Dever, captures Joel and discloses her identity as the daughter of the doctor he fatally wounded in the head to save Ellie. Subsequently, she wounds Joel’s leg with a gunshot and beats him senseless with a golf club. After transitioning to bare knuckles and continuing the assault, Abby ultimately delivers the lethal strike by plunging a spike into Joel’s neck.

Pascal expressed to HBO that “meeting Kaitlyn was incredible” and found it “oddly fitting” how intense and sad scenes between characters could create a strong connection with the actors portraying them. Following the broadcast, he posted a selfie he snapped with Dever during the filming of the episode on social media.

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2025-04-21 18:48