Pedro Pascal: TV's best father figure

Chilean and American actor Pedro Pascal has had his fair share of action adventures such as saving the galaxy (and Baby Yoda) in The Mandalorian or flirting and fighting through Westeros as Oberyn Martell in Game of Thrones, but 2023 was the year Pascal shined the brightest in his darkest acting performance yet.

The Last of Us (2023) by HBO tells the story of two characters, Joel Miller played by Pascal and Ellie Williams played by Bella Ramsey, navigating a post-apocalyptic world in this traumatic adaptation of the 2013 video game produced by Naughty Dog. The story involves Joel and Ellie trying to find a cure for the virus that has turned humans into cannibalistic animals.

Joel in many ways is like the Mandalorian, both are father-like figures with very caved-in emotions. Joel especially is a broken, damaged character after the loss of his daughter Sarah, who eventually gets his spark back interacting and caring for Ellie, and Pascal uses his experience from past castings to benefit his character to portray a father-daughter relationship that elevates the series to new storytelling heights. Both Pascal and Ramsey provide excellent portrayals of their characters and the trials they must overcome together provide a dynamic that is touching and genuine, despite their grim circumstances.

The critics seem to agree, as Pascal won Best Hero at the 2023 MTV Movie + TV Awards, as well as Pascal and Ramsey winning Best Duo. The Last of Us is available to stream on HBO and NOW TV.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uLtkt8BonwM