The Last of Us co-creator defends changing Ellie and Joel's porch scene from the game

19 May 2025, 13:06

By Sam Prance

The Last of Us season 2 episode 6 makes several major changes to Joel and Ellie's storyline and fans of The Last of Us game aren't happy.

The Last of Us season 2 episode 6 is facing criticism from fans after making multiple major changes from the games and now The Last of Us co-creator Neil Druckmann has explained why the porch scene is different in the show.

Ever since The Last of Us debuted on HBO in 2023, the series has been praised for how loyal it is to the games that it is based on. Not only does the series follow the same narrative as the games but it also recreates some scenes still for still. Nevertheless, there have been some notable changes including Bill and Frank's story and Tess' death.

The Last of Us season 2 strays a little further from the games than season 1 and the porch scene in episode 6 ('The Price') is perhaps the biggest example of that yet. Scroll down to see why fans are complaining about the changes and read what Neil Druckmann has said about altering the narrative from the games in season 2.

• Read more: The Last of Us' Bella Ramsey apologised to Tati Gabrielle after "brutal" episode 5 scene
• Read more: What happened to Eugene in The Last of Us and why did Joel kill him?

WARNING: The Last of Us season 2 episode 6 spoilers below

Bella Ramsey shows intense training they did for The Last of Us season 2

There are several key differences in Episode 6. Firstly, Joel and Tommy's scene with their abusive dad isn't part of the games. Secondly, Eugene isn't married to Gail in the games; he is single and dies from a stroke on a patrol with Din. And thirdly a lot of these scenes play out as flashbacks throughout the games instead of all in one narrative arc.

Perhaps most controversially though, Ellie finds out about Joel killing everyone in the Firefly hospital to save her in a completely different way. In the game, there's a flashback to two years before Joel's death where Ellie explores the hospital and finds a recording of Fireflies discussing how the only person who can create a vaccine is dead.

Joel then finds Ellie and she confronts him about what really happened in the hospital. Joel explains that they would have killed her to make the vaccine so he "stopped them". Distraught, Ellie says that she will go back to Jackson. However, she makes clear that she's done with Joel. This explains why they're estranged in Jackson.

Ellie and Joel then have another confrontation on their porch after the barn party where they discuss what he did.

By contrast, Ellie and Joel don't return to the hospital in the series. The show explains that Ellie is mad at Joel because he killed Eugene when he promised her wouldn't.

Ellie then find outs what Joel did at the Firefly hospital in the porch scene.

Reacting to the changes on X / Twitter, one person said: "Aight man, I’ve been trying to like this season of Last of Us. But tonight the scene where Ellie finds out Joel’s lying and the Joel/Ellie porch scene is literally integral to the actual ending and they complete screwed it. THESE CHANGES HAVEN’T MADE THE STORY ANY BETTER ONE BIT."

Another fan wrote: "I don’t mean to sound like a toxic dude bro and pls give pedro and bella emmys immediately but why did they change the porch scene so much why did they combine the two most important scenes in the game."

Discussing the change in narrative with The Hollywood Reporter, The Last of Us co-creator Neil Druckmann said: "If we spaced out these scenes and planted them throughout the season, I believe they wouldn’t land as powerfully because they’re short moments and work better when they’re next to each other."

He added: "You can just see the comparison — it’s like their relationship is slowly deteriorating. If we put one in an episode, and then you have to wait a week to see the next, you have to remember what the last one was."

The porch scene also takes place much later in the game. Defending its placement in the series, Neil said: "We have to take into account that the story is being delivered week by week, season by season, with more story coming potentially years later."

He ended by saying: "There would be a high risk of the porch scene not landing if he held onto it."

Read more The Last of Us news here:

• The Last of Us' Bella Ramsey was "fixated" on looking more like Ellie in season 2 after age criticism
• The Last Of Us' Kaitlyn Dever had extra security on set because of Abby hatred
• Is Ellie gay in The Last of Us? Her sexuality in the video game explained
• What happened to Eugene in The Last of Us and why did Joel kill him?
• The Last of Us boss explains why they killed Joel so early in season 2

WATCH: The Last of Us' Bella Ramsey paints Ellie while answering questions about season 2

Bella Ramsey Paints A Portrait While Answering Questions | The Last Of Us

Listen live to Capital, and catch up on any shows you missed, on Global Player.