The Last of Us: HBO Reveals Troy Baker’s New Character

The latest trailer for HBO’s The Last of Us revealed video game voice actor Troy Baker’s character in the TV adaptation.

Baker has become synonymous with a number of video game franchises over the years; however, none have stood the test of time better than his portrayal of Joel Miller in PlayStation’s The Last of Us and The Last of Us Part II.

While Baker is not playing Joel this time around, he has shared his vocal support for HBO series stars Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey during the show’s run. He also got the chance to suit up and get in front of the camera for the post-apocalyptic drama for his own unique role.

And with only a couple of weeks left in the show, time is ticking for Baker’s character to pop up on-screen.

Troy Baker’s New Last of Us Character Revealed

HBO’s ‘Next Week On’ sneak peek teaser for Episode 8 of The Last of Us gave fans a look at Troy Baker, Joel from the video games the hit HBO series is based on, in his new role for the TV adaptation.

The short trailer sees Baker dressed in winter gear, playing a character known as James.

James is described as the secondary antagonist during the upcoming episode. He was David’s (played by Nolan North in the games and Scott Shepherd in the TV series) partner and is second-in-command in a cannibalistic group of survivors.

The voice/motion capture actor tweeted in celebration of his character’s first tease, posting “Oh…hey” with a picture of his HBO character.

Baker joins his The Last of Us co-stars Ashley Johnson, Merle Dandridge, and Jeffrey Pierce (who The Direct recently had the chance to speak with about the series), as actors from the beloved PlayStation franchise who had the chance to also appear in the HBO series.

Who is Troy Baker Playing in HBO’s The Last of Us?

Warning – The rest of this article contains spoilers for The Last of Us.

Some may be wondering if Baker’s James character was a new one made specifically for the HBO series. Actors from the video game like Jeffrey Pierce (who played the digital version of Tommy) filled entirely new roles, as showrunners Neil Druckmann and Craig Mazin built out the world set up in Naughty Dog’s 2013 PlayStation 3 exclusive.

However, James is actually not an original character made for the live-action adaptation.

Fans of the game will recognize James from the Winter segment with Ellie, showing up alongside Nolan North’s David. The pair help Ellie take on some infected before taking her prisoner at their camp of cannibals.

James does not get much screen time in the game. However, the role is not insignificant, so it feels like the perfect fit for a cameo from someone like Baker.

Knowing Baker played Joel Miller in the games it will be exciting to see the character interact with Bella Ramsey’s Ellie. Perhaps his fingers will be the ones that Ellie breaks after being taken hostage.

But it will be interesting to see if Baker ends up coming face-to-face with Pedro Pascal as Joel for a meta and incredibly tense look in the mirror.

The Last of Us continues its nine-week HBO run next Sunday at 9 p.m. ET.