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The Last of Us: Neil Druckmann on Departure, Season 3 Involvement

Neil Druckmann discussed his decision to step down as The Last of Us co-showrunner and how he sees himself involved with Season 3.

Published Thu, 11 Sep 2025 13:07:03 -0500

by Ray Flook

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Earlier this summer, the word came down that Neil Druckmann would be stepping down as co-showrunner with Craig Mazin, leaving Mazin the lone showrunner heading into the third season of HBO's Bella Ramsey (Ellie) and Kaitlyn Dever (Abby)-starring The Last of Us. Though remaining an executive producer, Druckmann will no longer be involved in the day-to-day, returning full-time to Naughty Dog to tackle a number of upcoming projects. Speaking with Variety, Druckmann offered some insight into his decision to step away and when he knew it was the right call. In addition, he shared what he sees his role being during the third season of the hit series.

"It was right when we were about to start the writers' room for Season 3, Druckmann shared, noting when he made the decision to step away from the show's day-to-day and return full-time to Naughty Dog. "I looked at what's in front of me, what would the next season might look like, and with all the various 'Last of Us' things I'm working on — not just the show — with all the various games I'm working on, the biggest one that takes up most of my time is 'Intergalactic: The Heretic Profit,' our next big IP for Naughty Dog and PlayStation, it felt like I could better serve all of my responsibilities if I stayed at a higher level."

Druckmann continued, "It was quite challenging to be as involved as a co-showrunner on Season 1 and Season 2, while running a studio and working and directing and writing a game. I really appreciated at Naughty Dog how many people stepped up while I was gone working on Season 2. Specifically, I spent quite a bit of effort on Episode 206 — prepping it, writing it, directing it. I wasn't sure if I'd be able to do that again. So I felt it around that period when we're wrapping up all the press and really about to get started with earnest in Season 3, that was a good time to reassess everything."

Despite juggling so many responsibilities over the course of the first two seasons of the hit HBO series, Druckmann made it clear that he "did really enjoy" and "took a lot away from" the experience. "I joked that I went to the best film school by working on the show, and I got to just really collaborate with incredible artists. There's a lot that I learned, even just as far as the craft of making cinematic storytelling. There's so much that overlaps with my work at Naughty Dog that I felt like I took quite a bit away from that. I think I could better serve this show and other adaptations like it in the future, having learned all this stuff — but my first responsibility, my first love, is video games, and it's at Naughty Dog."

Regarding the third season of HBO's The Last of Us, Druckmann clarified that he will still have some involvement, but that it would be at a "very, very high level" and not as it was previously. "As I was saying earlier, my job now is to stay very high level. As much as I miss getting into the weeds and working on the effects shots and giving script notes and really getting into the details of it, I'm trying to just shepherd it," Druckmann explained. "My hope for Season 3, and what I'd like to I think I can best contribute to it, is to make sure it's as deeply faithful as Season 1 was. Because I feel like that is the gold standard for this kind of adaptation, while enjoying all these beautiful expansions that happen naturally with the rest of the team and how they're working on Season 3. So that is where my involvement will stay is at that very, very high level."

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