‘The Last of Us’ Just Revealed Four New Cast Members and Their Characters are Shaking Things Up

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The Last of Us has become one of 2023's must-watch shows, and it didn't take long for the series to take off. Now the big adaptation of the video game of the same name is officially coming back for another season, and fans are very excited to hear more about what this will mean for the future of the HBO series. After all, there's already a sequel video game, so there's a lot of ground to cover. Between such an explosive finale and some of the changes they've made from the game to the show, we don't know what to expect!

Here's everything you need to know about season 2 of The Last of Us.

Has The Last of Us been renewed for season 2?

Thanks to its big viewership numbers and incredible hype from press before it debuted, The Last of Us was renewed before the third episode even aired. Despite the show's big numbers, fans were still worried about The Last of Us possibly getting canceled after dozens of other shows were recently pulled off HBO/HBO Max, but thankfully they had nothing to sweat.

The TV series also become the first live-action video game adaptation to get Emmy nominations during its 2023 ceremony with both Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey getting lead acting nominations for their roles. And they have some big competition too in the Best Drama Series and guest actor/actress categories. Overall, the series got 24 total nominations and was only behind fellow HBO drama Succession.

What will The Last of Us season 2 cover?

That's the big question! The first season completely covered all of part 1, so we definitely won't be seeing more of that story. Which means season 2 will likely contain a small time jump to cover The Last of Us Part II. The game takes place five years later and follows Joel and Ellie's lives as they deal with the aftermath of their journey. We won't say any more than that, but the creators have said that they are trying to keep in mind everything that happens in Part II when they move on to season 2.

"It’s more than one season," Neil Druckmann told GQ UK, although they wouldn't reveal how many.

How close to the games will it be?

Just like how there were changes in the show's first season, there will also be some changes as they adapt the second game into the The Last of Us' future seasons.

"It will be different just as this season was different [from the first game]," Craig Mazin said in a press conference, according to EW. "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. It won't be exactly like the game. It will be the show that Neil and I want to make."

Will the cast return for a second season?

No matter what, we'll definitely see Pedro Pascal back as Joel and right now Bella Ramsey is set to return as Ellie. Ellie will be 19 instead of 14 like in the first game/season. However, considering the fact that Bella Ramsey is actually 19 IRL, the show's co-creators have confirmed that she's set to return unless she changes her mind about coming back.

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

Craig Mazin, the showrunner of the series, also added, "We are making it with Bella. We know what we're gonna do in terms of costume and makeup and hair, but more importantly, we also know the spirit and soul of the actor."

Are there any new cast members joining?

Fans have been wondering if Abby was set to appear in season 2 or if things were going to shift for the next season, but now we finally have our answer. HBO announced that Kaitlyn Dever will be joining the series as Abby, which will certainly set things off in season 2. We won't reveal exactly what happens to her character, but she will definitely play a strong part in Joel and Ellie's journey.

Two new cast members were announced a few days later including BEEF star Young Mazino as Jesse and Isabella Merced as Dina. This is definitely giving us a big hint that things will be jumping off right with the second game, but there's a chance we might see some new stuff especially with the inclusion of these new characters.

Oh, and then they also announced even more new cast members with Danny Ramirez, Ariela Barer, Tati Gabrielle, and Spencer Lord all joining season 2.

They will be playing Owen, Mel, Nora and Owen, four members of the Washington Liberation Front who have big connections to Abby.

Has work started on the new season yet?

The Last of Us game creator Neil Druckmann announced on Twitter that work on season 2 has already begun!

This likely just means that ideas are starting to flow and it's also possible that the writer's room has opened up, but we're still going to have to wait a bit for filming to start.

Bella Ramsey noted on The Jonathan Ross Show that filming won't begin until "end of this year, beginning of next. So it’ll probably be the end of 2024, early 2025,” until the season premieres.

However, at HBO and Max's special press presentation in November 2023, Chairman and CEO Casey Bloys confirmed that production wouldn't start until Spring 2024, pending the status of the SAG-AFTRA strikes.

When will season 2 of The Last of Us premiere?

At the November 2023 press event, it was also confirmed that the series will be returning in 2025, although, an official release date wasn't revealed. But at least we know it's coming!

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