While most The Last of Us fan art aims to capture the beauty of the games, some are simply aiming to be fun. That is the case with a new poster that was shared on The Last of Us subreddit, with the image spoofing the movie We’re The Millers.
For those unfamiliar with the 2013 comedy, it starred Jason Sudeikis and Jennifer Aniston. Focused on Sudeikis’ character building a fake family for an illegal job, which includes Adam Warlock actor Will Pourter, the film is very strange and a far cry from The Last of Us series. Still, its poster has clearly stuck with Reddit user rayan7x, as they edited the image to feature four characters from the Naughty Dog games.
While the original movie poster saw some characters making different faces, The Last of Us characters featured in the edited image are all smiles. Players will notice Joel, Ellie, Tommy, and Maria on the poster, and this specific selection of characters should make the joke clear. Joel, Tommy, and Maria all have the last name Miller, and while it is never confirmed if Ellie took on this surname, she is certainly a Miller at heart. As such, the four characters are literally the Millers, explaining why someone thought to make such a weird crossover.
While it would be nice to see some lighthearted fun with this group of characters, as someone like Tommy could certainly use a break, a few people commenting on the poster are not fans of all the smiling. While The Last of Us 2 models are used to ensure the most realistic versions of the characters are being featured, none of the characters are seen smiling this much in the games. As such, commenters like Charmarta have called the image “uncanny valley,” and it is hard to argue against this take.
Others, like Additional_Bluebird9 and Ashehn, find the image unnerving purely because of how dark The Last of Us 2’s story is. While there are a few cheerful moments, like Joel’s birthday gift for Ellie or Owen and Abby exploring the Aquarium, most of the game is depressing and serious. At the same time, other commenters find the image to be pleasant, with queeninthesky saying that it is heartwarming to see Ellie “unabashedly smile that wide.” With her trauma keeping her from being as happy as she looks here, even when she’s on the farm with JJ and Dina, the fan-made poster is a nice change.
With so many different reactions to this funny The Last of Us poster, as well as over 3,000 upvotes, many have clearly taken note of rayan7x’s work. Though it may be a bit off-putting to see the Millers smiling this much, it is a nice change from the sadness and anger that The Last of Us fans have seen so much of.