How The Boogeyman Director Rob Savage Was 'Hugely Influenced' By The Last Of Us

"The Last of Us" has been on the tip of everyone's tongues, and that is in large part due to HBO Max's record-breaking adaptation. Following Netflix's "Narcos," Pedro Pascal's career journey was on an upturn, and rightfully so. The experienced actor explodes as Joel Miller onscreen, with equal parts anxiety and rage. 

But the series would be nothing without the 2013 game, created by Neil Druckmann. There he laid the foundation for that nature of grief and the commitment to do anything for love — good and bad. Game players weren't the only ones touched by this moving story. Rob Savage told Polygon that the video game left imprints on his new film "The Boogeyman." Adapted from the Stephen King short story of the same name, connections between the two stories make a lot of sense.

"[T]here are scenes in The Boogeyman where me and Eli [Born, cinematographer] were geeking out about certain stealth scenes in 'The Last of Us,'" Savage revealed, going on to say: "They're so involving, and to give the audience that feeling of subjectivity ... I think only video games can really do that. But if you can get even a fraction of that across in a horror movie, you really terrify the audience." Savage isn't alone in stating that "The Last of Us" is the peak of video games. Connecting the two horror-centric stories is almost a given. But there is another element of storytelling that unites the two narratives.

What makes "The Last of Us" so touching is the central relationship of the story. There are no forced romances or shoehorned drama to be found. The central relationship is between a grieving father and his surrogate daughter. Audiences hang in with Joel as he pushes firecracker Ellie (Bella Ramsey) away until he finally can't deny he loves her anymore. Take away the Infected and high stakes, and "The Last of Us" still has an emotional story at its heart. 

Actors in "The Boogeyman" knew this was just as integral to their film as well. In Rob Savage's film, the family consists of Will (Chris Messina) and his fractured relationship with his two daughters, Sadie (Sophie Thatcher) and Sawyer (Vivien Lyra Blair). Without a believable connection between the family, the movie would not work.

"We had about two weeks of a rehearsal process, which is not usual," Messina told Variety about their preparation for the film. "It was really me and my daughters going to the aquarium, or we went bowling, or we had a bunch of pizza and hung out. By the time we got the set, we really liked each other. We really trusted each other. Therefore, we were a family." If anyone knows the power of connection in horror, it is "Yellowjackets" star Sophie Thatcher, who agreed with the sentiment. "The family has to feel real or you don't believe the movie at all," Thatcher said. "So that was really important to build."