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The sixth episode of The Last of Us Season 2 was an emotional roller coaster. It marked Pedro Pascal's return as Joel after he died in "Through the Valley", the second episode of this season, at Abby's hands. The episode was entirely a flashback episode, focused squarely on Joel and Ellie's relationship between seasons 1 and 2.
The Flashbacks showed how Joel and Ellie celebrated Ellie's birthday after arriving in Jackson. The flashbacks focused especially on Ellie's 15th, 16th, 17th, and 19th birthdays. But this episode showed something else entirely, too: Joel's past. In fact, "The Price", the sixth episode of The Last of Us Season 2, opens up with a flashback set in the 1980s, where we meet Joel and Tommy's father, Javier Miller.
Here is the deal about this flashback: I was completely taken by surprise when I saw this flashback because Javier was played by none other than Tony Dalton. I immediately recognized him as the actor who played Swordsman last month in Daredevil: Born Again Season 1. This casting, while surprising, does make sense because Dalton and Pedro Pascal look very similar. So, kudos to the casting team.
SPOILER ALERT: This article discusses a surprising cameo from The Last of Us Season 2. Reader discretion is advised.
Who is The Last of Us Season 2's Javier Miller?
The first time we meet Javier is in the opening moments of "The Price", the latest episode of The Last of Us Season 2. This is a flashback set in 1980s Texas. Young Tommy, who had just gotten out of purchasing a substance absolutely terrified of his police officer father's violent reaction. Young Joel assures Tommy that he will take the blame.
As Javier enters the room, Joel takes the blame, but the former doesn't buy it. Then Joel tells Javier not to harm Tommy, and to the former's surprise, Javier brings out two beer cans and gives one to Joel. Then, Javier proceeds to talk about his father being more abusive than him and that he never went as bad as his father.
This opening scene explores the theme of the cyclical nature of violence and generational trauma. Niel Druckmann, the co-showrunner of The Last of Us Season 2, addressed Dalton's casting choice in the Entertainment Weekly interview. His exact words were:
"Tony Dalton was my first choice. I just loved his performance so much in Better Call Saul. I jokingly refer to him as the most charming, threatening man I've ever seen on television."
The same flashback scene featured another surprising cameo.
Andrew Diaz, the actor who plays young Joel in The Last of Us Season 2, also worked with Pedro Pascal:
18-year-old Andrew Diaz, the actor who played young Joel in The Last of Us Season 2, also appeared together with Pascal in the 2020 Netflix movie We Can Be Heroes. The interviewer asked Druckmann about this connection, to which the showrunner replied:
"We were just looking for a good actor that, if you squinted, you could kind of see Pedro. And he has a very Pedro vibe to him."
Thus, this episode of The Last of Us Season 2 managed to pull off not one but two interesting cameos.
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