Pedro Pascal appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and said he momentarily forgot about being cast in the leading role in HBO's The Last of Us thanks to the Ambien he took to help him sleep.
Pascal recalled the "strange circumstance" of his casting process for the highly popular action-adventure series developed by showrunner Craig Mazin based on the video game created by Nei Druckmann.
The Chilean American actor—who appeared on the fourth season of Game of Thrones and starred as the title character of Disney+'s Mandalorian—told Fallon he was in London when Mazin and Druckmann–who were in Los Angeles–wanted to talk to him about the show.
You can see Pascal tell the story in the clip and video below:
\u201cPedro Pascal forgot he got the role of Joel in @TheLastofUsHBO after taking an Ambien. \ud83e\udd23 #TheLastOfUs #FallonTonight\u201d— The Tonight Show (@The Tonight Show) 1675400821
Prior to the call, Pascal was given a script for The Last of Us and asked by Mazin to get back to him if he was interested in being involved with the project.
For Pascal, it was a no-brainer.
Having already been a fan of Mazin's work on HBO's Emmy Award-winning miniseries Chernobyl, Pascal immediately reached out to Mazin and the two hit it off.
The late-night call was extended after Mazin brought on Druckmann–who also wanted to virtually meet Pascal.
Pascal shared:
“And at that point, it’s really late. I’ve got to get up in the morning, [so] I take an Ambien to go to sleep just in case."
"They've got my adrenaline going and got my anticipation, my hopes up."
Pascal added he later got the official call notifying him he booked the role after already taking the sleeping pill.
"I was excited I guess but I don't remember," he said.
When he woke up the following morning, Pascal wasn't sure if the good news he thought he had heard was a dream or not.
He said the first thoughts that came to him were:
“Oh man, I really want that job. I’m in London. They’re in LA. I’m going to wait by the phone all day long."
"This hasn’t happened in a while. I’m going to be longing. I’m going to think about it all day long."
But as soon as Pascal checked his phone, he realized he didn't have to worry.
He had received a flood of congratulatory texts.
“When I looked at my phone … I was like, ‘Oh yeah, I got the job!’
\u201c@FallonTonight @TheLastofUsHBO I adore his honesty \ud83d\ude02 #PedroPascal #TheLastOfUs #TheLastOfUsHBO\u201d— The Tonight Show (@The Tonight Show) 1675400821
\u201c@IGN Well\u2026. That\u2019s not the worst thing to happen to a celebrity on ambien lol\u201d— IGN (@IGN) 1675432025
\u201cAmbien can be INTENSE! #TheLastOfUs https://t.co/jK78fErpJN\u201d— Perez Hilton (@Perez Hilton) 1675448994
\u201c@IGN That's such a Joel thing to do.\u201d— IGN (@IGN) 1675432025
\u201c@IGN Pedro is the people\u2019s champ\u201d— IGN (@IGN) 1675432025
\u201c@IGN Pedro Pascal channeling his inner GoT vibes and he\u2019s got so many roles he can\u2019t even keep up \ud83e\udd23\u201d— IGN (@IGN) 1675432025
\u201c@IGN It's moments like this where I'm reminded most actors/actresses are normal jabronis like the rest of us. \ud83d\ude06\u201d— IGN (@IGN) 1675432025
In the post-apocalyptic drama, Pascal plays protagonist Joel Miller who is a survivor on an important mission after a parasitic fungus called cordyceps causes a global pandemic by turning the infected into mutant zombies.
The Last of Us airs Sundays at 9 p.m. pacific time on HBO and streams on HBO Max.
