Ever since Alien: Romulus came out, several people online have been comparing lead actress Cailee Spaeny with Ellie from The Last of Us Part II. Everyone also thought it was a coincidence that Isabela Merced, who plays Kay in the film, will also play Dina in the second season of The Last of Us.
Interestingly, director Fede Alvarez revealed that The Last of Us profoundly influenced Alien: Romulus and even influenced a big-story decision.
How The Last of Us Part II Inspired Alien: Romulus
As revealed on Twitter by Alvarez, he was playing The Last of Us Part II when he was writing Romulus, and Kay’s pregnancy resulted from the character Dina being pregnant in the game. Check out his post:
What’s probably wilder is that he had cast Merced to play a character inspired by Dina, then a year later, Merced gets cast as Dina in the second season of The Last of Us on HBO.
Other Possible Influences
Though the Dina/Kay connection is the only Last of Us reference that Alvarez has opened up about, some fans have pointed out other similarities between Romulus and the game.
For one, the character of Navarro (Aileen Wu), with her shaved head, looks much like Lev, who was also prominent in The Last of Us Part II.
The hairstyle Rain sports in the movie resembles that of the older Ellie in TLOU2. Fans even got to see Rain in an old-timey space suit. Ellie doesn’t get to wear a space suit in the game, but she does sport an astronaut’s helmet while she daydreams inside an actual rocket ship.
The Last of Us Season 2 on Max
For now, HBO is still gearing up for the premiere of The Last of Us Season 2, which could premiere in early 2025. No synopsis has been released yet, but there have been hints that the season will follow events from the second game.
While the first season did follow the first game from beginning to end, some speculate that the second game could be split into multiple seasons—especially considering the non-linear narrative that it followed, with the two parallel stories of Ellie and Abby taking place around the same time.
Not to spoil too much from the game, but it’s possible that the season’s major death could take place around the finale, with the content of the game flashbacks being the main story for Season 2. That way, there’s an immediate empathy for both Abby and Ellie as their story progresses naturally; rather than the switcheroo that the game pulls on the players.
Then again, this is just speculation. Fingers crossed HBO releases some more details before the year ends.
Alien: Romulus is now showing in theaters. No specific release date has been announced for The Last of Us Season 2, but it’s expected to hit Max sometime in 2025.