[Editor’s Note: The below contains spoilers for Episode 3 of The Last of Us]HBO’s The Last of Us is setting up for one of its biggest storylines yet with the introduction of the fan-favorite character Bill (Nick Offerman) and his partner Frank (Murray Bartlett). Following the gut-wrenching events of the previous episode where Tess (Anna Torv) tells Joel (Pedro Pascal) and Ellie (Bella Ramsey) to seek safety with the two, the series has set up for another emotional gut-punch as series co-creators Neil Druckmann and Craig Mazin unveil their new and more in-depth approach to the men’s troubled relationship. During an interview with Collider’s own Christina Radish, Mazin went in-depth on what this new future will hold and how they came to the conclusion to change the fate of Bill and Frank.

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In The Last of Us video game, Bill serves as a partner to Joel brought together due to the debt Bill owes. While their partnership is a little rocky and Ellie manages to get on his nerves, he helps Joel secure a vehicle and even lends him some valuable tools along the way. Their quest to get a vehicle running is brought to a screeching halt for a brief moment when they find a hanging body—that of Bill’s old flame Frank. Bill is cagey about his relationship with Frank in the game, only briefly mentioning how much he cared about him to Joel and how he still loved him even as Frank grew tired of Bill and his unchanging ways. The dagger in the heart, however, is that Frank used his suicide note to spite Bill. It’s a dark, lonely ending for the character, and Bill’s cagey, flawed nature reflects where Joel is and where he could be if he doesn’t change.

Against two heavy episodes, however, Mazin wanted to shake things up with Bill and Frank in Episode 3. He explained:

“Well, I had this instinct that, after the story of the first episode, which is almost movie length and very tense and very upsetting, where we see the world fall apart, and then we see Joel and Ellie meeting each other, and they don’t like each other, and they head out into an adventure, and then the second episode is in this destroyed open city, and there’s more danger and more action and tragedy, I needed a breath. I needed an episode to just take a breath. I started to think, naturally, about how what would happen next is that we would get to Bill. The way Neil had designed Bill’s character in the game, he becomes a partner to you, in gameplay. Some of what he was, was connected specifically to the needs of gameplay. But also, he was a dark omen of what Joel could become, if he didn’t open his heart back up to somebody else.”

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Image via HBO

RELATED: ‘The Last of Us’: Nick Offerman Shares New Images of Bill Ahead of Episode 3 Debut


Mazin Had a More Hopeful Vision for Bill and Frank in The Last of Us

With Episode 3, Mazin dared to ask Druckmann if they could accomplish the same effect of the Bill and Frank storyline, but in a more positive manner. With gameplay no longer a factor, he decided instead to flesh out the relationship and be more open with their love for each other. The teaser already gave some idea as to how this could play out, showing the moment that Bill and Frank first meet and how they collaborate to survive. Instead of showing the downfalls of not opening up, Mazin explains that instead, with the right care, it can be a success story. He adds:

“I thought that maybe, since we could disconnect Bill from Joel and Ellie, in terms of gameplay, we could expand on this hint of a partnership with Bill and Frank, and maybe give it a slightly different, or actually a radically different, ending. That is when I pick up the phone and say, “Neil, I’ve got a radical idea. Maybe it’s not a negative or dark omen, but actually a sign of hope. There is a chance that, in this world, as dangerous and terrible as it is, there can be positive love and a successful long-term relationship.”

For Joel, that message would ring equally true. After the emotional devastation of losing his daughter Sarah and later the death of his smuggling partner Tess, he became more closed off than ever, as the plague had taken just about everything. To see Bill and Frank able to keep a strong relationship, or at the very least end on much better terms, would prove that love can survive and thrive through even a destroyed world and how that love can provide strength even as things are falling apart. Mazin explains how love of all kinds—from the caring, gentle kind to the vengeful, protective sort—is at the heart of The Last of Us and how he won over Druckmann with his overtures, saying:

“I’m not a gay man, but I’m a middle-aged married man. I’ve been in a committed relationship for over 25 years. I know what that is, and that’s a different kind of love. It’s a different kind of commitment and sharing. I thought it was a chance to show how time elapsed from Outbreak Day to where we are now, but also to show success and a victory, and to really dig into two basic archetypes of love. There’s the kind of love that is outward and giving and nurturing. As Frank says, “Paying attention to things is how we show love.” And then, there’s the other part of love, which is the protective, violent, if necessary, vengeful conserving of the people that you care about and love. Those two kinds of loves are gonna appear, over and over, in the series. Bill and Frank’s relationship became a codex for me, of how the theme of this storyline was gonna play out, over and over and over. The question is, will it always play out as successfully as it does for Bill and Frank, or is there a different kind of version, where it’s explosive and actually very dangerous? So, I wrote it all, I sent it to Neil, and I was like, “Uh.” And he was like, “This is my new favorite.” And I was like, “Phew.” And that’s a credit to him. I completely wandered way off the reservation there, and he loved it.”

Episode 3 of The Last of Us is now available to stream on HBO Max. Check out the preview below.



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