The Mandalorian's Pedro Pascal to play Joel in The Last of Us HBO series

HBO's TV adaptation of The Last of Us has found its two lead actors, with Pedro Pascal cast as Joel, and Bella Ramsey cast as Ellie in the upcoming series.

According to a report from Deadline, Pascal – who is perhaps best known for his portrayal of Oberyn Martell in HBO's Game of Thrones or the titular protagonist in Disney's The Mandalorian – has been signed as Joel, the "hardened survivor" hired to smuggle Ellie out of "an oppressive quarantine zone".

Ramsey, fellow Game of Thrones alumnus known for playing Lyanna Mormont, will play the 14-year-old Ellie "who represents the last hope of humanity".

It seems the series will be staying true to the source material for the most part, then. Deadline reports that Joel himself will be "tormented by past trauma and failure", which isn't really a surprise for anyone familiar with Naughty Dog's 2013 PS3 game.

Production staff on the project have previously noted that the plan is to expand the world of the game in the series and that the TV adaptation is set to feature a “jaw drop” moment from the original game that was cut from the final release.

Naughty Dog veteran and game director Neil Druckmann will be working on bringing the IP to the small screen, and Chernobyl creator Craig Mazin is also on hand to work some of his prestige TV magic on the show, too.

Druckmann and Mazin write and executive produce respectively, and Carolyn Strauss (also of Game of Thrones and Chernobyl fame) is attached to executive produce.

The man in charge of The Walking Dead TV show – Scott Gimple – has publically praised the team behind the TV series and lauded the 'amazing creators' attached to the project.