Shubhabrata Dutta
The intriguing saga of the beloved Joel and Ellie is not ending anytime soon! The Cinemaholic has learned that HBO has reportedly renewed the post-apocalyptic drama series ‘The Last of Us’ for its third season. The upcoming installment is expected to return to production in Vancouver, British Columbia, in the summer of 2025. Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann will continue to write the show based on Naughty Dog’s eponymous video game series. Kate Herron, Mark Mylod, Nina Lopez-Corrado, and Stephen Williams are slated to return as directors. The renewal comes ahead of the seven-episode second season’s premiere in the spring of 2025.
The season 1 finale reveals that Ellie is immune to the Cordyceps infection. She and Joel head to a hospital that belongs to the Fireflies for shelter. However, they are soon attacked by some of the members who bring them to the place. Joel meets Marlene there, and she informs him that his companion is immune to the infection. Therefore, the Cordyceps in her can be extracted and used to make a cure. As useful as it will be, he does not want to risk her life. Marlene gives him a chance to escape, but he decides to rescue Ellie regardless of the consequences.
As the episode progresses, Joel takes down multiple members of the Fireflies, including the surgeon about to operate on Ellie, rescues her from the surgery room, kills Marlene to prevent her from tracking them, and escapes with his companion to Tommy’s in Jackson, Wyoming.
The first installment’s finale sets up the second season in numerous ways, which will take place five years later. Since one Firefly escapes from the hospital, this surviving member can inform others about Joel’s actions. In the game ‘The Last of Us Part II,’ the infected Stalker, which bit Ellie’s mother, Anna, is a part of the Rat King, the most horrifying zombie form and a combination of Stalkers, Bloaters, and Clickers. Since the series has introduced the Stalker, the Rat King may turn up in the upcoming episodes.
‘The Last of Us Part II’ game also has the dead surgeon’s daughter, Abby, as the main villain. She will be introduced in the second installment as the antagonist who wants to avenge her father’s death. The third season turned out to be inevitable since ‘Part II’ had several storylines to cover. “The story material that we got from Part II of the game is way more than the story material that was in the first game, so part of what we had to do from the start was figure out how to tell that story across seasons,” Mazin told Deadline. The co-creator also teased that the fourth installment may materialize to faithfully adapt the video game series.
As far as the cast of season 2 is concerned, Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey will be back as Joel and Ellie. Gabriel Luna will also return as Joel’s brother, Tommy, along with Rutina Wesley as Tommy’s wife, Maria. Jeffrey Wright will be introduced as Isaac Dixon after giving life to the character in ‘The Last of Us Part II.’ Other confirmed cast members include Kaitlyn Dever as Abby Anderson, Isabela Merced as Dina (Ellie’s romantic interest), and Young Mazino as Jesse (Dina’s ex). Catherine O’Hara will also feature in an undisclosed role. Other cast members include Danny Ramirez as Manny, Ariela Barer as Mel, Tati Gabrielle as Nora, and Spencer Lord as Owen.
Vancouver also hosted the filming of the show’s previous seasons. In addition to Downtown Vancouver, the second installment was shot in Kamloops and Britannia Beach.
