The Last of Us season 2: everything we know so far

The Last of Us season 2 is on its way. This comes as no surprise, as season 1 has been both a critical and record-breaking hit for HBO and Sky.

The Last of Us Part I hit shelves in 2013, with Part II being released for PlayStation in 2020. Season 1 of the HBO show adapts the story of part I, which sees Joel, surviving in post-apocalyptic America as a smuggler, who is tasked with escorting a teenage girl named Ellie across the country. What starts out as a reluctant partnership develops into a love between a father and daughter, and an emphasis is placed on the lengths we go to protect the ones we love most. In the HBO series, Pedro Pascal plays Joel with Bella Ramsey portraying Ellie.

After the first two episodes broke viewership records, the series was promptly renewed for as season two. The second season will adapt The Last of Us Part II, which focuses on a slightly more grown up Ellie and her life outside of Joel.

We've rounded up all there is to know about the new season, including release window speculation, plot, and casting.

It goes without saying, but there are major spoilers for The Last of Us season 1 ahead! Turn back now if you aren't all caught up!

The Last of Us season 2 release date

The show was immediately greenlit for season 2 – after only two episodes had aired. Season 1 was filmed in Alberta, Canada from July 2021 to June 2022 before premiering on HBO on January 15, 2023.

Pedro Pascal told Collider that there is a "chance" the new season will start filming this year, meaning we could have a 2024-2025 release window. "In the year 2023? Oh, what season are we in now? We're getting into spring?" he playfully remarked. "Yes, there is a chance. Yes."

The Last of Us season 2 cast and crew

Though Ellie is five years older in The Last of Us Part II, Bella Ramsey isn't going anywhere. The actor is now 19, the same age as Ellie in Part II. During a press conference attended by Total Film, Craig Mazin jokingly commented that Ramsey is in a "very experimental process" to age Ellie up, which consists of "smoking six packs of cigarettes a day on a pure whiskey, tainted beef diet."

"We know what we're going to do in terms of costume and makeup and hair, but more importantly, we also know the soul and spirit of the actor," Mazin continued. "It will be the show that Neil and I wanna make, and we are making it with Bella. The only way we would ever, ever consider recasting Bella is if they said, 'I don't wanna work with you guys anymore.'"

As TLOU Part II mainly focuses on Ellie, her partner Dina, and a new character named Abby Anderson, it's likely that Pedro Pascal will still appear in the first episode and some flashbacks – but will have a significantly reduced role.

"I know what happens in the second game, and I'm nervous about potentially being without Pedro for a while. That's gonna be really sad," Ramsey said on the Happy Sad Confused podcast with Josh Horowitz.

Fans have already begun dream-casting Abby, with many speculating that the character could indeed be Shannon Berry from The Wilds – as Mazin and Druckmann have both recently started following her on Instagram.

The Last of Us season 2 plot

As season 1 shares the same ending as the video game, it's safe to say season 2 will head into The Last of Us Part II territory.

This has been confirmed by both Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann, latter simply tweeting, "Part II ---> HBO" upon sharing the news of the show's renewal.

In a global press conference attended by Total Film, Mazin stated: "We're being very careful about how we talk about part two, but The Last of Us Part II takes place multiple years after the story of the original game. We'll be looking to directly adapt Part II."

"The amount of remaining story [in the Last of Us Part II] would take us more than a season to tell," Mazin told Collider, adding that while they don't see the show being one that runs for multiple seasons, the events of Part II may take place over more than one additional season.

Druckmann added: "I remember, early on, I asked Craig and HBO, 'How many episodes does this season need to be' And the answer was, 'As many as the story requires, and no more.' And likewise, that would be our approach for future seasons to say, 'Okay, this will be as many seasons as required to reach that ending, and no more.'This will be as many seasons as required to reach that ending, and no more."

Ramsey said they're looking forward to exploring Dina and Ellie's relationship. They continued: "Also, the complexity of her relationship with Joel and how that gets decidedly... more complex. I'm looking forward to that, and the violence that ensues is thrilling in a way. To get to explore that in a really safe environment would be cool but I am nervous about it, too."

The Last of Us can be streamed in full on HBO Max. For more, check out our guide to the Cordyceps infection and the major Last of Us episode 8 changes from the games.