The Last of Us: "You f*cked up"— Craig Mazin recalls when director Mark Mylod expressed his desire to work with The Last of Us co-creator

The Emmy award-winning director Mark Mylod has helmed the second episode of The Last of Us season 2, titled Through the Valley, which aired on HBO on April 20, 2025. The episode has sent the internet into a frenzy as it features the gut-wrenching murder of the show's fan-favorite character and protagonist, Joel (Pedro Pascal), at the hands of Kaitlyn Dever's vengeful Abby.

Following the episode's release, the show's co-creator, Craig Mazin, told The Hollywood Reporter how he got Mark Mylod to direct the episode in an article published on April 21, 2025. He mentioned how he was keen on working with the English director in season 1, but Mylod was busy shooting for Succession at that time.

"Mark was doing one of those (For Your Consideration Emmy campaign) panels because obviously Succession was going to win everything. And the question they asked all these directors was: 'If you could work with one person, who would it be?' And he said, 'Craig Mazin.' And then I texted him: 'You f***ed up,'" he said jokingly.

Mark Mylod has directed several critically-acclaimed shows

Mark Mylod is seen at the UK premiere of The Menu in November 2022 (Image via Getty)

In the same interview, Mark Mylod stated that his reaction to reading the script for episode 2 was a "combination of jaw-dropping and terror." The episode also includes an epic battle sequence between the survivors and the Infected in Jackson, which leaves the town ravaged by the end.

At the start of his career, Mark Mylod worked on shows like Entourage, Shameless (both UK and US versions), The Affair, and Once Upon a Time, among others. Furthermore, he has directed six episodes of Game of Thrones and 16 episodes of Succession, both for HBO. He is currently in the midst of preparing for HBO's adaptation of the Harry Potter series, which is slated for release in 2027.

He also directed 2022's black comedy horror film The Menu, starring Ralph Fiennes, Nicholas Hoult, Anya Taylor-Joy, Hong Chau, Judith Light, Janet McTeer, and John Leguizamo, to name a few.

A brief recap of The Last of Us season 2 episode 2

The Last of Us season 2 episode 2 begins with Abby reliving the death of her father, a Fireflies soldier who was senselessly murdered by Joel while saving Ellie in Salt Lake City at the end of season 1. Abby is resolute in her mission to kill Joel, despite the reluctance of her friends Manny, Nora, Mel, and Owen.

Meanwhile, Joel goes on patrol with Dina due to his ongoing tensions with Ellie. Abby accidentally awakens a group of infected buried in the snow, and they come charging down at Jackson, requiring all hands on deck to protect the commune from the invaders. During the attack, Tommy comes to his wife's rescue after a bloater charges at her and kills it with a flamethrower.

Joel and Dina rescue Abby from the mayhem and follow her back to the lodge to pick up her friends, who can help defend the town. However, Abby shoots Joel in the knee and bludgeons it repeatedly with a golf club before delivering the fatal blow to his neck. Ellie, who arrives at the lodge in search of Joel, is forced to watch helplessly as her father figure dies in front of her eyes.

Abby and her group leave the town after fulfilling their mission, while a revenge-filled Ellie is seen carrying Joel's body back to Jackson along with Dina and Jesse.

All episodes of The Last of Us are available for streaming on Max.

About the author

Deepti is an entertainment writer at Sportskeeda. She comes with more than 6 years of experience in the creative writing field and has written extensively for the entertainment and travel domains.

She holds a degree in Chemistry, but her true interest always lay in the creative field. A passion for reading from a young age fueled her desire to make a career change later in life and take up writing as her profession.

Apart from reading, her hobbies include watching movies, listening to music, and going to the beach. In her free time, she can be found looking up reviews of new and old films to add to her watchlist. She also enjoys watching foreign language films that help expand her knowledge base regarding different cultures around the world.

Asked to describe herself, she would promptly mention that she is a die-hard Swiftie and enjoys nothing more than listening to Taylor Swift songs on loop while writing.

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Edited by Tiasha