Troy Baker is a well-known commodity in the gaming world. He is one of the most versatile voice actors in the industry, playing Bruce Banner in Marvel’s Avengers, the Arkham Knight in Batman: Arkham Knight, Samuel Drake in Uncharted, and The Joker in Batman: Arkham Origins.
But one of his most iconic roles is that of Joel in The Last of Us series.
The Last of Us is being adapted for television by HBO, and is being overseen by Neil Druckmann, who directed both The Last of Us and The Last of Us 2.
Baker has stated that he would love to have a cameo role in the series, but he would not want to play Joel. This came up when Baker was talking about the first look we’ve received of Tom Holland playing the role of Nathan Drake in the Uncharted movie adaptation.
At the time, Baker was talking with fellow famed voice actor Nolan North, who voices Nathan Drake in The Last of Us games.
After Baker noted that he thinks Tom Holland looks great in the role and would bring a whole new side to Nathan, the subject of The Last of Us came up. Baker was asked if he would sit down and talk with whoever HBO ends up casting as Joel, similar to how North sat down with Holland to discuss Nathan Drake.
Baker then said that he would love to show up on the show as an infected or Clicker and get blown up by Joel.
The subject of casting for Joel and Ellie has been a hot button topic since the series was announced in late 2019. Many immediately suggested Wolverine actor Hugh Jackman for the role. Baker himself stated that he would love to see Josh Brolin take on the smuggler turned reluctant father figure.
“I think on its face, literally, Josh Brolin would be a knockout choice,” Baker said a few months ago when he sat down for an interview with Colider. “But I don’t know if I would walk away learning something different about Joel.”
He went on to say “I’m in a great position, because either, A: somebody steps into that role and I’ll be like, ‘damn, dude, I never thought about that, wow, what an interesting choice.’ Or, B: they suck, and people go, ‘only Troy can play Joel.’ So, either way I win.”
The Last of Us Series is currently under development by Naughty Dog‘s Neil Druckmann and Chernobyl showrunner Craig Mazin.
