Matthew McConaughey Turned Down HBO's The Last of Us

HBO once extended an olive branch to Matthew McConaughey, asking him to star in the HBO live-action drama "The Last of Us", but according to foreign media reports, the Hollywood star turned down the role.

HBO has not yet announced the full cast of The Last of Us, but Bella Ramsey and Pedro Pascal (the protagonist of The Mandalorian) have been confirmed to play Ellie and Joel. As you might guess, the reaction of fans to these casting announcements is mixed, after all, this is inevitable. That is to say, although Ramsey may be the first choice to play Ellie, at least, Pascal is not Joel's original target.

It is worth mentioning that there were previous reports that Mahershala Ali, the black actor from Blade, was considered to play Joel. If this is true, then Pascal is obviously far from being HBO's first choice for Joel.

Does this mean that fans should be worried about the series? Not necessarily, as cast changes happen all the time in the casting world. However, there is no doubt that the series would have greater appeal and influence if Matthew McConaughey played the leading role.

The Last of Us is currently in pre-production and is scheduled to begin filming next month. HBO has not yet announced when it will air.