In what ways does The Last of Us: Part 2 build up the plot for Season 2 of the show?
In what ways does The Last of Us: Part 2 build up the plot for Season 2 of the show? (Image courtesy- HBO)

It shouldn’t be a shock to hear that The Last of Us Season 2 will start production after The Last of Us: Part 1’s HBO adaptation was a huge success. HBO hasn’t said more about the second season of the drama yet, which seems logical given that Season 1’s conclusion only recently aired. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t any rumors going around.

The Last of Us, an HBO zombie apocalypse drama that broke viewing records, is returning for a second season with Bella Ramsey and Pedro Pascal playing emotionally scarred pseudo-father-daughter combination Ellie and Joel.

The HBO adaptation had a 22 percent increase in viewers from its first episode to its second, making it the second-largest premiere for the media giant, trailing behind the Game of Thrones prequel House of the Dragon in terms of viewers. It is sufficient to state that quite a lot of people are invested in the PlayStation series adaptation, which has sold millions of copies of its two games.

The Last of Us Season 2: What to expect, tentative release window, and more 

Bella Ramsey and Pedro Pascal in The Last of US
Bella Ramsey and Pedro Pascal in The Last of US (Image courtesy- HBO)

Fortunately, HBO renewed The Last of Us for a second season. Given how rapidly the show shattered viewership records, this came as no surprise. The creators are yet to announce a release date for Season 2 despite the show’s popularity. Even though filming might start as early as this year, it won’t premiere until at least 2024 or 2025.

The Last of Us: Part II was released on the PlayStation 4 in 2020, seven years after its predecessor’s launch. Further, it presented a longer and more intricate story as well. The HBO adaptation’s creators have confirmed that the events of Part II will cover more than one season because there are several additional characters, flashbacks, and action scenes.

What to expect from Season 2? 

The Last of Us is an HBO zombie apocalypse drama
The Last of Us is an HBO zombie apocalypse drama (Image courtesy- HBO)

Season 1 of the drama closely resembled the plot of the first game. Although some significant alterations were made (such as the situation around Tess’ death, how the sickness spreads, Bill and Frank’s friendship, Henry and Sam, and more), overall it was a very faithful adaptation; even down to reenacting some of the game’s most important scenes shot for shot.

In The Last of Us Season 1, we saw that an outbreak of a mutant Cordyceps fungus ravaged the United States in 2013, changing its human hosts into hostile creatures known as the Infected. Joel (Troy Baker) escaped the chaos with his brother Tommy (Jeffrey Pierce) and daughter Sarah in the suburbs of Austin, Texas (Hana Hayes).

The whole first game’s events were covered in Season 1 of the show. Yet, one shouldn’t anticipate the HBO adaptation to be precisely the same just in case of Season 2 just because the season depicted the complete arc of the first game.

Things might be a little different for those anticipating that Season 2 would receive the same treatment when it eventually airs. As of now, Craig Mazin has hinted that season 2 will “be its own thing” and be “different.”

Five years have passed since the events of Part I and, presumably, Season 1, by Part II. Although its scope is significantly greater than that of the first game, fans have been speculating whether it would be changed for the upcoming season.

As Season 1 adapted the events from Part I, Season 2 will most likely follow the story from Part II. The story follows Joel and Ellie four years after the events of Part I, when the latter learns that he prevented the Fireflies from killing her and created a cure for the Cordyceps pandemic.
In the second season, we may see how Joel and Ellie attempt to reconcile. We may also witness Ellie’s growing relationship with Dina, and her vengeful pursuit of Abby Anderson. Furthermore, we might also get a glimpse of the war for control of Seattle between the Washington Liberation Front and a cult of religious fanatics known as the Seraphites. Not only that, but the show might also depict everything from Abby’s point of view.

HBO formally renewed The Last of Us for Season 2 in January, but the makers have “more than one season” in mind to portray the far longer tale from the video game. Although Pedro Pascal hinted that Season 2 will start filming later this year, no release date has been set as of yet.

Bias Sinha Sarkar
https://www.spieltimes.com/author/bias
Bias Sinha is a Writer at Spiel Times. She is an introvert who is currently pursuing her Bachelors in Education. Moreover, she used to work as a freelance content writer. She is interested in books, old movies, and K-dramas. In her leisure time, she likes to read, make DIY crafts, create scrapbooks, watch series and spend time with her fur baby. Furthermore, she is also writing her own book.