The first season of HBO's adaptation of the hit video game The Last of Us is said to cost at least $10 million per episode, making it one of the most expensive Canadian productions ever.
Canadian news station CTV News reported on preparations for the production of The Last of Us in southern Alberta, emphasizing how the production will boost local economies. Fort McLeod, the same town that films such as Brokeback Mountain and the upcoming Ghostbusters: Afterlife were shot in, is one of the main locations being utilized for the post-apocalyptic drama starring Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey.
Damian Petti, President of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) Local 212 union, stressed the immensity of the undertaking in terms of both manpower and budget. "The Last of Us which commences photography this week is indeed a monster," Petti said. "It has five art directors and employs an army of hundreds of technicians. It has had six months of prep and shoots (in Alberta) for 12 months."
Petti could not confirm any specific budget estimates, but says "it is likely the largest project shooting in Canada." He said, "This project well exceeds the eight figure per episode mark, so there is a multiplier effect on our economy in terms of its impact. There are hundreds of related businesses benefitting from the plethora of work."
An eight figure budget per episode for a 10 episode season confirms that the total cost of The Last of Us Season 1 will be over $100 million. HBO is no stranger to mounting such expensive productions; Game of Thrones hit the $10 million per episode mark in Season 6 and reached $15 million per episode in its final season, while Westworld Seasons 2 and 3 also surpassed $10 million per episode. Other HBO sci-fi and fantasy series such as Watchmen and Lovecraft Country have not had budgetary figures released but are also suspected to be in the higher range of TV productions.
The highest reported budget for an upcoming TV show belongs to Amazon Prime Video's Lord of the Rings series, the first season of which will cost around $465 million. That figure is more than the entire budget for Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings film trilogy even after adjusting for inflation. Marvel Studios' various series for Disney+, such as WandaVision, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier and Loki, have budgets of up to $25 million per episode.
HBO's The Last of Us does not yet have an official release date, but both games, The Last of Us and The Last of Us Part II are currently available for purchase. The adaptation's cast includes the likes of Pascal (The Mandalorian), Ramsey (Dumbo), Gabriel Luna (Terminator: Dark Fate, Agents of Shield) and more, even including Jeffrey Pierce, who voiced Tommy in the video games. The series is expected to release early in 2022.
Source: CTV News
0 Comments