Lаurа Bаіley Almoѕt Wаѕn't Cаѕt Aѕ Abby In Tһe Lаѕt of Uѕ 2 Becаuѕe "Sһe'ѕ In Everytһіng"

Prolific video game voice actor Laura Bailey portrayed Abby splendidly in The Last of Us Part 2, making us care and hate the character all in one game.

However, did you know that almost didn't happen? Naughty Dog boss Neil Druckmann was reluctant to hire Bailey for the part since she was "in everything."

Laura Bailey's Audition For Abby Changed Druckmann's Mind With One Single Moment

Speaking to Sony Santa Monica Studio's Cory Barlog at the DICE Summit this week (via PCGamer), Neil Druckmann shared that he "was sure it was going to be a different actor" after watching the auditions live.

However, after watching the audition tapes frame-by-frame, Druckmann insisted Baily was right for the part, even if the studio consensus was she wasn't right for the part given "she's in everything," which included Naughty Dog's Uncharted 4: A Thief's End, where Bailey played Nadine Ross.

The tipping point came when Bailey showed a "vulnerability" that none of the other actors had, and when Druckmann played this video back to the rest of the studio, they were then convinced Bailey was right for the role.

For her performance as Abby, Bailey won the Best Performance award at the 2020 The Game Awards, a BAFTA Award, and was nominated for a DICE award.

No word yet on whether we'll see Bailey reprise her role in the game, but Kaitlyn Dever will play the character in the second season of HBO's The Last of Us TV series airing this April.