The Last of Us season 2 is finally here, and we'll be returning weekly to watch the story unfold from here on out. We've already seen how Craig Mazin, Neil Druckmann, and co have adapted one of the best games of all time back in season 1 of the hit HBO Max show. However, this second outing has already started with a bang, as we point out in our Last of Us season 2 review.
But, even if you are familiar with The Last of Us games, some storylines have been tweaked. There's also a slew of fresh faces joining Bella Ramsey's Ellie and Pedro Pascal's Joel. So, to make sure you get the most out of one of the best shows on Max out right now, we've made a relatively spoiler-free guide on everything that you need to know about The Last of Us season 2 as the series progresses over the next few weeks.
From The Last of Us season 2 release schedule, cast list, trailer, and more, here's all the information you need before facing all those Clickers on your small screens once again.
The Last of Us season 2 release date & schedule
The Last of Us season 2 was released on April 13 and is now taking over the Sunday night slot on HBO, now that The White Lotus season 3 has come to an end.
Fans based in the US can now watch the show on HBO Max, while those across the pond in the UK can tune in through Sky and NOW. There will be seven episodes in total for season 2, which will roll out weekly. The final episode of the season will roll out on May 25 for US viewers and on May 26 for the UK.
The Last of Us season 2 trailer
We've had a ton of The Last of Us season 2 trailers. However, the "official" trailer, which you can watch above, didn't arrive until early March 2025.
In the clip, we see Joel and Ellie living peacefully after the events of the first season. However, in a zombie-filled world, peace is never long-lasting, and soon the teaser is filled with Clickers, tanks, and explosions.
Featuring a bunch of iconography from the games, like Joel's cracked watch and Ellie and Dina travelling on horseback, it's much more action-packed than the teasers shown previously. It's also a great way to hype you up for the season if you haven't started it or need to get in the mood. So check it out!
The Last of Us season 2 cast
We're going to do our best to skip over major The Last of Us: Part 2 spoilers here, but suffice to say The Last of Us season 2 features a host of new characters opposite Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey, who will be back as Joel and Ellie.
During a press conference attended by Total Film, co-creator Mazin says of Ellie's transformation post-time skip: "We know what we're going to do in terms of costume and makeup and hair, but more importantly, we also know the soul and spirit of the actor… It will be the show that Neil and I wanna make, and we are making it with Bella. The only way we would ever, ever consider recasting Bella is if they said, 'I don't wanna work with you guys anymore.'"
Bella Ramsey has already gone on record stating that they are excited for "the Ellie and Dina story" – a budding romance between the two Jackson residents. They also told GamesRadar+ they were looking forward to working with the other "excellent" newcomers jumping on board.
Speaking on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Ramsey explained that they are keen to explore "the complexity of her relationship with Joel" and how that gets decidedly more complex. "I'm looking forward to that, and the violence that ensues is thrilling in a way," Ramsey said.
Check out the Last of Us season 2 cast list below:
- Pedro Pascal as Joel
- Bella Ramsey as Ellie
- Kaitlyn Dever as Abby
- Isabela Merced as Dina
- Young Mazino as Jesse
- Jeffrey Wright as Isaac
- Danny Ramirez as Manny
- Ariela Barer as Mel
- Tati Gabrielle as Nora
- Spencer Lord as Owen
- Catherine O'Hara as Gail
- Rutina Wesley as Maria
- Gabriel Luna as Tommy
- Robert John Burke as Seth
- Joe Pantoliano as Eugene
- Alanna Ubach as Hanrahan
- Ben Ahlers as Burton
- Hettienne Park as Elise Park
The Last of Us season 1 recap
This section contains major spoilers for The Last of Us season 1. If you've not yet caught up, turn back now!
As we go through in our more in-depth breakdown of The Last of Us season 1 ending explained guide, we left Joel and Ellie with the former having just "saved" the latter from the Fireflies HQ in Salt Lake City.
Despite journeying across the apocalyptic US to deliver Ellie, whose immunity had caught the Fireflies attention, to them, Joel took drastic, violent measures to get her back after he discovered the terrifying truth about what they had planned for her: become a lab rat in the hopes of inventing a cure to the Cordyceps infection. As Marlene coldly explains to Joel towards the end of the episode, the experiments would have undoubtedly killed Ellie, but what's one life if it means they could save countless more?
Unfortunately for Marlene, Joel didn't agree on the expendability of Ellie's life, and he shot her dead and whisked the unconscious teen away, and Marlene wasn't the only one to feel his protective wrath in Saint Mary's Hospital that fateful day...
Just like the game, the episode closes with Joel lying to Ellie about the Fireflies' intentions, claiming that they did their tests and weren't able to find anything of use, so he's driven her to Jackson so they can live out the rest of their lives as best and peacefully as they can. A move that will eventually cause tensions between the pair in season 2...
If you're wondering how closely the original ending aligns with that seen in the show, here are the biggest changes between The Last of Us episode 9 and The Last of Us: Part 1's finale.
The Last of Us season 2 plot details
Should The Last of Us season 2 continue to follow in the footsteps of season 1 – following the video game fairly faithfully, while expanding on certain moments and quickening up the pace in other areas – then you'll want to start mentally preparing yourself for a far darker story.
In the trailer, we see what appears to be the first four-ish chapters of The Last of Us Part 2 – though it mostly seems like scenes from chapter one. But of course, it's a TV adaptation, so certain creative liberties are expected to be taken – which explains why we see Isaac (Jeffrey Wright) in the trailer, even though said character doesn't appear until the second half of the game, around Chapter 5.
The concept of the game is that the player controls both Ellie and Abby in two separate narrative arcs. It's hard to tell whether the seven-episode second season will stay mostly in Ellie's perspective (the first half of the game) or dip into the first chapter or two of Abby's arc. If Isaac is already being introduced, then we suspect it might be the latter.
As we noted in our The Last of Us 2 review, the video game very much deals with the cyclical nature of hatred and revenge – to say anything else would wade into spoiler territory, although we do have a The Last of Us 2 ending explained article, should you be unable to manage the wait for season 2 to wrap up.
What we do know is that Ellie, Joel, and co won't just be fighting off clickers in season 2, with co-showrunner Craig Mazin promising new types of infected in the fresh batch of episodes. "I think we can say that we are dedicated to the idea that just as humanity is progressing and [Jackson] is getting bigger and they're bringing people in, the infected are also evolving," he told GamesRadar+ ahead of the premiere.
"So we're certainly going to see quite a few changes along the way to impress upon our characters. Oh, you think you've figured it out, you think you're good at handling the infected? The Rat King is something that anybody who has played The Last of Us Part 2 is traumatized by for so many reasons, count myself among them."
In the game, the main types of infected are Clickers, of which we saw plenty of in season 1, Bloaters, Runners, Stalkers, and Shamblers. The Rat King is a particularly monstrous but unique variant that Abby comes face to face with in Part 2.
We won't spoil anything more just yet, so you have time to watch the series for yourself. But know that the plot of season 2 is filled with angst, action, and plenty more monsters.
Will The Last of Us season 2 follow the same story as the game?
It looks exceedingly likely that The Last of Us season 2 won't cover the entirety of The Last of Us Part 2. In fact, the show's co-creators – Mazin and Druckmann – have already signalled that the events of Part 2 will require multiple seasons to properly bring the ambitious storyline of the second game to life.
Druckmann also revealed that there's some "pretty brutal" cut content from The Last of Us 2 that's been adapted for this new season, so be ready for anything, even if you think you know what's coming...
As for how many seasons The Last of Us will need to tell the next part of Joel and Ellie's adventure, well, that remains to be seen. Although Mazin has teased that "four seems like a good number". HBO's Head of Drama Francesca Orsi echoed a similar sentiment in February 2025, saying, "We don’t have a complete or final plan, but I think it’s looking like four seasons."
From what we've seen in the trailer, it looks like it will get about halfway through, as there are some shots of Jeffrey Wright's Isaac, an Abby flashback, and someone who looks like they could be Lev.
Will The Last of Us season 2 include a time skip?
In The Last of Us: Part 2 video game, there is a five-year time skip. We shift from the climactic conclusion of The Last of Us: Part 1 to find an older Joel and Ellie settled into life in Jackson, Wyoming. The show is set to feature the same jump, even if, as Mazin suggests, other parts of the season are "radically" different from the game.
Want to get caught up on the show ahead of a season 2 watch? Here's how to watch The Last of Us TV show online. We also have a list of all the new TV shows heading our way if you are after more fresh titles.
