Amidst the interminable wait for the second season of The Last of Us, its showrunner shares an exciting update on the future of the hit HBO series. Renewed for the second season before the finale aired on HBO, The Last of Us is HBO’s highly-anticipated adaptation of the favorite and acclaimed Naughty Dog game.
An American post-apocalyptic drama television series that was released on HBO Max on January 15th, 2023, The Last of Us is fully star-studded with Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey as Joel and Ellie. Garnering the reputation of being one of the biggest new television shows of 2023, it is also touted as one of the greatest video game adaptations of all time.
Spiking the anticipation of the fans, creator Craig Mazin has been quoted saying that they will be having “more than one season”, if they plan to recount the entire story of The Last of Us Part II video game. Even though HBO has clarified that “there’s no guarantee” for a season 3, the creators of the show are looking forward to the deal, it seems.
Here’s a complete breakdown of the same.
Is The Last of Us getting renewed for two more seasons?
At the time of writing this article, no official word has been unraveled regarding the renewal status of this critically acclaimed PlayStation game except that its second season would soon hit HBO. Be that as it might, showrunner Craig Mazin has showcased his propinquity for the show to have a season 4.
While engaged in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Mazin hinted at having a third and a potentially fourth season. However, he also admitted to having “a budget bump” while talking about the production of the upcoming second season.
He said:
“There’s always a budget bump and then there’s a discussion about why it’s not enough of a budget bump. For as long as I’ve been doing this, I have never, ever, not once, been in a situation where I was like, ‘What I need is this’ and they’re like, ‘Okay!’ It eventually gets to this [holds hands at same level], so I’m not concerned about that.”
Unraveling the issues faced in the wake of this budget bump, Mazin spiked the attention of the viewers with what he said next:
“Even if we have a principal debate about what is required to execute a second season, a third season, a fourth season, what I always know is that they are always working in good faith and appreciate the creative value of the show. It’s not a bloodless, business-only decision for them. Maybe on some level, there are people for whom it is, but not for [Casey Bloys and Francesca Orsi]. They care and want to back us up.”
The tacit revelation of the future of the show couldn’t be more enticing!
To make things even more explicit, Mazin revealed that he has “laid out our vision to HBO for how this series should lay out across not one season, but multiple seasons.”
And then, finally…
“Four seems like a good number.” (We agree with that Mazin! 4 is indeed a good number)
Mazin further revealed the possible inconsistency with the future episode count of the potential seasons, saying: “Some seasons, because of the story we’re telling, will need fewer episodes and some will need more.”
No matter how many episodes there are, the fans would be thrilled by the fact that there is a future for the show (although not officially confirmed by HBO). And as Mazin said:
“I don’t know if any season will actually have the same amount of episodes. But, whatever, the number’s not important. What’s important is when they get to the end of the season, they’re like, ‘That was a good season.’”
And it sure will be!
With that being said, it’s important to keep track of the ongoing production schedules of the second season, which will definitely concretize into reality. However, the ongoing writers’ and actors’ strikes which have shut down the productions of some of the high-grossing shows, have made the fans concerned over the delay of the second season.
Here’s what we know so far about the same.
What is the production status of The Last of Us Season 2?
As mentioned previously, the production of this critically-acclaimed live-action adaptation of the video game has been put on hold owing to the two looming strikes and their failed negotiation with AMPTP.
Per Variety, the show had begun with the cast auditions in May but soon had to put the work on pause. As of now, no scripting is done, and it won’t even start until the writers’ strike ceases to continue.
As per the reports, The Last of Us Season 2 was supposed to start filming in early 2024, but given the current status, it doesn’t seem to materialize into reality anytime soon.
When can we expect The Last of Us season 2 to air on HBO?
The first season finale of The Last of Us aired on March 12, 2023, in the US and March 13th, 2023, in the UK. Although the second season is confirmed to air, HBO has not revealed its exact release date. We suspect that it will take quite some time before the second season begins airing.
In conversation with The Washington Post, executive producer of the show Craig Mazin revealed that it took them approximately 200 days to film the first season in Canada, not to mention the additional months for post-production. Digital Spy states, “In total, it took 18 months from the date when the first scene was shot to the launch of season one on January 15th, 2023.”
Based on this above-mentioned information, we can make an educated guess for determining the release schedule for season 2. However, we also need to take into consideration that the scripts need to be written, and the cast and crew need to be put in place. So, presuming the work begins by the end of 2023, we cannot expect the second season to air on HBO before the second quarter of 2025, provided that the strikes cease to continue and a fair deal is reached.
Actress Bella Ramsey confirmed the release window of The Last of Us season 2, saying:
“It will be a while. I think we’ll probably shoot at the end of this year, the beginning of next. So it’ll probably be the end of 2024, early 2025.”
This was confirmed by the Head of HBO, Francesca Orci, who told Deadline that the second season is currently scheduled to air in 2025. However, owing to the current production status, this release schedule can also be pushed further.
But, owing to the failed negotiations between the writers and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), the productions of a lot of high-grossing series and movies have been put on hold, including The Last of Us.
For more renewal and release date updates on The Last of Us, stay tuned to Web News Observer!