Forget season 2: We can’t wait for season 3 and 4 of The Last of Us

By Dan Girolamo March 14, 2023

This article contains spoilers for season 1 of The Last of Us.

HBO’s The Last of Us recently concluded its terrific first season on Sunday night. The series has already been renewed for a second season, which will be developed from the video game The Last of Us Part II. However, showrunners Craig Mazin (Chernobyl) and Neil Druckmann (Uncharted) revealed the second season would not cover the entirety of Part II and they need a third and potentially fourth season to complete the story.

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In an interview with GQ, Mazin and Druckmann were asked if season 2 would contain all of the elements from Part II, a large game with multiple storylines. After Mazin said it would not include everything from the second game, Druckmann said, “It’s more than one season.” Mazin would not say exactly how many seasons, but he added, “You [the interviewer] have noted correctly that we will not say how many. But more than one is factually correct.”

Ellie sits on a truck bed in The Last of Us Episode 9. — Liane Hentscher/HBO

In the season 1 finale, Joel (The Mandalorian’s Pedro Pascal) saves Ellie from surgery that would kill her, even though it may be the only way of finding a cure for the virus that has ravaged humanity. On his way out of the hospital, Joel kills Firefly leader Marlene (Station 19’s Merle Dandridge), fearing she would come after Ellie in the future. On the way to Tommy’s settlement, Joel lies to Ellie about what happened at the hospital, saying the Fireflies found other immune people, but could not find a cure. Ellie makes Joel swear that his story is true, which he does.

The Last of Us was a monster hit for HBO, increasing in ratings as the series progressed. The season finale had an audience of 8.2 million viewers, a series high. The premiere was the second most-watched debut (4.7 million viewers) since 2010, only behind House of the Dragon.

Stream The Last of Us season 1 on HBO Max.

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