“The Last of Us” season 2: Everything we know so far

"More massive," more Infected, just… more.

Got cordyceps fever after the season 1 finale of The Last of Us? Well, prepare yourself for season 2 of the HBO adaptation, because it's bound to be even more of a flashpoint among viewers than the first.

Since the nine-episode first season tackled the main events of 2013's The Last of Us video game and the Left Behind DLC, a 2014 side story players could download separately, season 2 will begin to translate the events of The Last of Us Part II, the sequel that shambled onto PlayStation in 2020.

The cast and creators have offered some clues about what to expect in The Last of Us season 2. Here's what we know so far.

What is "The Last of Us" season 2 about?

Sorry, but we're not telling you. If you've played The Last of Us Part II, then you have some idea. If you haven't, spoilers are too baked into the fabric of the story that even extracting certain plot points runs the risk of letting the whole thing slip. It's the equivalent of knowing about the Red Wedding or the Jon Snow twist on Game of Thrones in advance.

For context, Naughty Dog, the gaming studio that developed The Last of Us, and Sony Interactive Entertainment, which published the games, doctored the trailers for Part II so eager fans wouldn't be able to see the context of certain scenes or which characters were around for the ride.

"Five years after their dangerous journey across the post-pandemic United States, Ellie and Joel have settled down in Jackson, Wyoming," the official Part II story description read at the time. "Living amongst a thriving community of survivors has allowed them peace and stability, despite the constant threat of the infected and other, more desperate survivors. When a violent event disrupts that peace, Ellie embarks on a relentless journey to carry out justice and find closure. As she hunts those responsible one by one, she is confronted with the devastating physical and emotional repercussions of her actions."

Showrunners Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann have played coy in interviews when it comes to how exactly they will be adapting the material. Mazin told reporters during a virtual press conference that season 2 "will be different," just as season 1 remixed the material a bit from the game. "Sometimes it will be different radically, and sometimes it will be [barely] different at all. But it's going to be different and it will be its own thing," he said. "It won't be exactly like the game. It will be the show that Neil and I want to make."

In a separate conversation on the official The Last of Us podcast, hosted by original Joel actor Troy Baker, Mazin further elaborated. "We will also take advantage of the freedom we have in television that wasn't there in the games, specifically the advantage of changing perspective," he said. "So, we will use what we can use in a new medium to tell that story and we will go through the same process of adaptation."

Who will star in the cast of "The Last of Us" season 2?

Druckmann and Mazin have already confirmed that Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey are returning as Joel and Ellie in season 2. Some fans pointed out the time jump in between the games as a concern for Ramsey's age, but the creatives stated, "We are making it with Bella." Despite what has been said online, Ramsey is now 19 years old, which is the same age as Ellie at the start of The Last of Us Part II.

"The only way we would ever, ever consider recasting Bella is if she said, 'I don't want to work with you guys anymore,'" Druckmann added. "And even then, we're not sure we would grant her that. We might still force her to come back to season 2."

Kaitlyn Dever (Booksmart, No One Will Save You), who was previously in the running to play Ellie, has been officially cast as Abby, a crucial character in the events to come. Cautious over story points, HBO released a description that refers to her as "a skilled soldier whose black-and-white view of the world is challenged as she seeks vengeance for those she loved."

Young Mazino, the Emmy-nominated actor from Netflix drama Beef, will play Jesse, described as "a pillar of his community who puts everyone else’s needs before his own, sometimes at terrible cost." In the games, Jesse is a close friend of Ellie in Jackson.

Isabela Merced from Dora and the Lost City of Gold and Transformers: The Last Knight will also star as Dina, "a free-wheeling spirit whose devotion to Ellie will be tested by the brutality of the world they inhabit." Dina is a love interest for Ellie and the ex-girlfriend of Jesse. Fans initially thought they had already met Dina in season 1, episode 6, when an unnamed character was caught staring at Ellie in the Jackson commune's cafeteria. The showrunners added fuel to the theorizing fires by saying, "That doesn't mean that that's Dina. Doesn't mean it's not."

"I'm really excited for the Ellie-Dina story," Ramsey previously said on an episode of the Happy Sad Confused podcast. "I've watched a clip. Someone's made a phenomenal, I don't know how they do, an amazing edit of the gameplay, Ellie and Dina's love story. So I'm excited to play that out."

Schitt's Creek Emmy winner Catherine O'Hara confirmed she was in talks for a role in season 2. Shortly after, HBO confirmed the casting. Speaking with Andy Cohen on the after-show for Watch What Happens Live, O'Hara said she has a family connection: "My son's a set dresser on the show." She will play an "undisclosed role," according to HBO. However, a previous report suggested O'Hara could be playing a newly created character and not one based on anyone from the video games.

When Abby arrives on the scene, she'll do so with her own group. Spencer Lord (The Good Doctor) will play Owen, Abby's closest friend who's described on the show as "a gentle soul trapped in a warrior’s body, condemned to fight an enemy he refuses to hate."

Ariela Barer (How to Blow Up a Pipeline) will play Mel, Owen's girlfriend. She's described as "a young doctor whose commitment to saving lives is challenged by the realities of war and tribalism."

Abby's friend group also includes Danny Ramirez (Top Gun: Maverick) as Manny and Tati Gabrielle (Chilling Adventures of Sabrina) as Nora. Manny is "a loyal soldier whose sunny outlook belies the pain of old wounds and a fear that he will fail his friends when they need him most." Nora is "a military medic struggling to come to terms with the sins of her past."

Among the other returning players, Gabriel Luna will make a comeback as Joel's brother Tommy. Back during the debut of season 1, he said he already sent some ideas to Mazin and Druckmann about what they could do with his character for season 2. Given her role in the game, it also seems fair to say that Rutina Wesley will return as Maria. However, we know she's pregnant in the context of the show, so she may have a child with her if/when she does return for season 2.

Ian Alexander, who voices another crucial video game character in The Last of Us Part II, told Insider, "My fingers are crossed that I get to reprise my role as Lev." The casting has not been confirmed.

Druckmann has already signaled that Laura Bailey, who plays Abby in the game, could come back in some alternate cameo or guest arc. (She previously reprised her background role as one of the nurses in the operating room from the game in the season 1 finale.) "Maybe we'll do something else with her in the next season," Druckmann teased.

When does "The Last of Us" season 2 premiere?

A premiere date hasn't been announced for The Last of Us season 2, but HBO has officially projected a 2025 return, according to an official 2024 Preview teaser released by the network. Filming on season 2 is scheduled to begin in Canada in February.

Will there be more Infected in season 2?

There are a lot of buzzwords floating around season 2.

Mazin referred to the next batch of episodes as "more massive" than season 1 during a press conference. He also teased that it's "quite possible that there will be a lot more Infected later, and perhaps different kinds."

Speaking more on that on the show's accompanying podcast, Mazin confirmed they will further explore the cordyceps hive mind that was introduced in episode 2, specifically the idea that the Infected can be summoned en masse if contact is made with a mutant tendril in their vicinity.

"I think this first time around we were learning so much about how to create the Infected and how to televise them in a way that was exciting and didn't seem goofy or weird or artificial," Mazin explained. "I think we've figured that out, and I think this next season the interconnectivity of them and the risk of stepping on the wrong thing, that stuff is gonna be brought forward more for sure."

In a previous interview with EW, Mazin also hinted that the concept of spores could be introduced to the show. In the game, survivors are forced to wear gas masks to protect themselves from the airborne fungal spores that can infect a person just as easily as a bite. The showrunners did not address that in season 1 of The Last of Us.

"If there were that many spores and they were airborne, that infection's gonna go even faster," Mazin reasoned. "It's hard to imagine how anyone escapes it, and people would probably be wearing masks all the time."

That said, he added, "I don't necessarily think we've eliminated spores from the universe of our show. We just haven't gotten there yet. It's possible that they may come back. We may have a plan, is my point."

How many seasons will "The Last of Us" have?

There's no concrete answer to this. However, it'll be at least three, assuming the ratings continue to be just as strong as the first season.

Mazin and Druckmann were firm from the jump that they would only adapt the events of the video games and nothing more. In an interview with British GQ, the showrunners confirmed it will take "more than one season" to adapt Part II. They didn't say how many, precisely. All Mazin would say was, "More than one is factually correct."

"Some of the stuff I'm most excited for [in Part II] are the changes we've discussed and seeing the story come to life again in this other version," Druckmann added. "And I think it's exciting because it leans into those feelings you had from the game, really heavily, in a new way."

This article will be updated as new information comes to light.

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