Maxance Vincent
When Kate Herron joined The Last of Us’s second season, she was not initially set to direct the fourth episode, which deepens the relationship between Ellie (Bella Ramsey) and Dina (Isabela Merced), while also introducing audiences to the character of Isaac, played by Jeffrey Wright, reprising his role from the video game.
When she eventually learned that this would be the episode she would work on, the director explained to Awards Radar on Zoom that she was “obviously thrilled when I got the script, because I get to do the Take On Me sequence, but also the subway scene. It was a mixture of touching and harrowing moments. I also got to introduce Isaac, which was massive. I felt very excited and grateful, but I also knew I had to get it right.”
In introducing the character of Isaac, Herron wanted to showcase that “there are sides to them where you have to understand why they are doing these things. You might not like their actions, but you have to understand why. Working with Jeffrey was terrific because he knows that character so well. As a director, I wanted to ground this aspect with as much truth as possible and give him the space to do what he does so well. It was a massive privilege, and I had a lot of fun.
The harrowing interrogation scene later in the episode was really important because it was such a power play between these two characters. Ryan Masson, our other actor, was fantastic. It was fun just working with all the cast to make sure that you were never quite sure which way Isaac’s journey is going to go. Jeffrey is very charismatic, but he does have an edge to him, like his interactions with the rookie at the beginning. It was really important to find that vulnerability at the beginning, when you’re asking why he’s helping this kid out, until it obviously takes a turn. It was interesting working with the cast, while also keeping the audience on the back foot so they can always question “Do I want to side with this person, or do I not want to?”
Of course, there was much to talk about with such a richly-layered episode, including the process that went into shooting the Take on Me scene and the Subway sequence, which are two pivotal moments from the video game. We also had a chance to talk about developing Ellie and Dina’s relationship, and collaborating with Bella Ramsey and Isabela Merced, while also trying to find the right balance between intimate, human moments with the characters, with some of the most significant action setpieces of the show.
You can listen to my full interview with Kate below and stream all episodes of The Last of Us – Season 2 on HBO Max today:
[Some of the quotes in this article have been edited for length and clarity]
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