Jensen Ackles had his eyes set on playing Joel Miller, the unrelenting survivor who leads the upcoming and much-anticipated apocalyptic fiction series.
The Last of Us is one of the most popular post-apocalyptic video games which is being turned into a television drama series by HBO. And the hype about the same has been over the roof, to say the least.
With The Mandalorian star, Pedro Pascal on the front lines along with the teenage Game of Thrones actress Bella Ramsey, the show is just a few weeks away from its premiere. But while fans are impatient with excitement to stream the zombie fiction, Jensen Ackles is mourning a lost opportunity of not being able to work in the series as the lead star.
Jensen Ackles Was Heartbroken for Not Getting the Lead Role in The Last of Us
Popular for his work in Supernatural and The Boys, Jensen Ackles recently revealed that he had his hopes up for playing Joel Miller in HBO’s adaptation of Naughty Dog’s video game titled The Last of Us. The character is now all set to be depicted by Narcos star Pedro Pascal who happens to be one of the most renowned actors in the film industry.
Although Ackles himself admitted that he probably didn’t even have a solid chance at getting the role in the first place, he still felt quite devastated to learn he didn’t earn the spot after all.
“I was really kind of pushing hard but I don’t think I was really in the mix or even had a shot at it, for Pedro Pascal’s role in The Last of Us. Really, I was like, ‘Woah! That was high up on my radar.'”
But while Ackles is upset for not being able to bag the role of the protagonist in The Last of Us, the audience, on the contrary, seems to be rather much more satisfied with Pascal getting it instead.
People Think Pedro Pascal is A Much Better Choice than Jensen Ackles
A video of Ackles talking about the subject at a convention surfaced online after which a Twitter account that provides various news and updates related to The Last of Us posted it. And people have been flooding the comment section with various reactions, mostly negative, as they remark how it’s probably for the best that The Winchesters actor didn’t get the role.
People are mainly bringing up the difference in age and experience between Pascal and Ackles to support their argument of why the former deserves the role more than the latter. But there also seems to be a unanimous assent in a more general way about how not only Ackles, but nobody else could be a better choice than the Chilean-American actor.
I love Jensen, but Joel Miller is such a specific role, I don't think anyone could do it better than Pedro Pascal
— Jovem Mandaloriano (@JvMandaloriano) December 19, 2022
jensen u not old enough yet, maybe when they remake it with a movie in 10-15 years or something buddy
— Ant Man (@EatUrAnt69) December 19, 2022
there's no other like him <3pic.twitter.com/8wI8Zpa4bj
— lu JUST MET PEDRO PASCAL (@pascalofmine) December 19, 2022
I love Jensen, but I personally don’t think he fits the role. So it’s probably a good thing he didn’t get it.
He also looks way too young for the role imo.— 💀🔥 𝒦𝒾𝓂𝓂𝓎 🔥💀 𝐈𝐗 (@Rinayru) December 19, 2022
honestly ??? this wouldn’t have worked anyway
— Taylor ☽ ☀︎ ⚘ ッ (@TaylorIsCrying) December 19, 2022
Clearly, this seems to be a Pedro Pascal supremacy zone only given how fans are convinced no other actor could possibly do justice to Joel’s character like he is expected to.
On a more positive note though, Ackles will be working in another video game wherein he will voice DC’s Batman in an upcoming project. So not getting a role in The Last of Us isn’t the end of the world for him and there are still plenty more opportunities awaiting Soldier Boy.
The Last of Us is set to premiere on January 15, 2023.
Source: Twitter
