Posted in: HBO, Max, TV | Tagged: the last of us

The Last of Us S03: Druckmann, Naughty Dog Not Involved Creatively

Neil Druckmann clarified that neither he nor Naughty Dog is involved creatively with HBO's The Last of Us Season 3, which is in production.

It was back in July 2025 that Neil Druckmann announced he would be departing HBO and Showrunner Craig Mazin's Bella Ramsey (Ellie) and Kaitlyn Dever (Abby)-starring The Last of Us ahead of Season 3. A little more than a year later, and with production on the third season well underway, some fans have been wondering if Druckmann had completely walked away from the adaptation to pursue new creative avenues with Naughty Dog or if he still had some level of creative involvement. During a recent interview, Druckmann answered that question in a way that made things pretty clear.

"I wasn't involved in shaping this season's creative direction, and Naughty Dog did not have a creative role in the direction of this season. So I can't personally speak to how production is progressing," Druckmann shared during an interview in a special column in The Washington Post. "It's important for us to note that as the creator of the games, Naughty Dog is still the steward of this IP and even though this might be the end of this adaptation, we're not done with 'The Last of Us.' There's a couple projects in the works that, when the time is right, I'm very excited to talk about."

Over the past few months, we learned that Jason Ritter (Matlock) and Patrick Wilson (Watchmen) had been tapped for recurring roles. In addition, Michelle Mao (Bridgerton) and Kyriana Kratter (Star Wars: Skeleton Crew) are set for the series regular roles of siblings Yara and Lev, with Clea DuVall (Poker Face) set to play a seraphite. Li Jun Li (Sinners, Spider-Noir) has joined the cast as Miriam, a Seraphite and the mother of Lev and Yara. Peter Sarsgaard (DTF St. Louis) is on board for an original recurring role: Amon, one of the leaders of The Seraphites. Ariela Barer (Mel), Tati Gabrielle (Nora), and Spencer Lord (Owen) were upped to series regulars, with Jorge Lendeborg Jr. (Spider-Man: No Way Home) taking over the role of Manny from Danny Ramirez due to scheduling conflicts.

"I've made the difficult decision to step away from my creative involvement in 'The Last of Us' on HBO," Neil Druckmann shared on the official Naughty Dog Instagram account last year, addressing his departure. "With work completed on season 2 and before any meaningful work starts on season 3, now is the right time for me to transition my complete focus to Naughty Dog and its future projects, including writing and directing our exciting next game, Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, along with my responsibilities as Studio Head and Head of Creative." Druckmann added, "Co-creating the show has been a career highlight. It's been an honor to work alongside Craig Mazin to executive produce, direct, and write on the last two seasons. I'm deeply thankful for the thoughtful approach and dedication the talented cast and crew took to adapting 'The Last of Us' Part I and the continued adaptation of 'The Last of Us' Part II."

"It's been a creative dream to work with Neil and bring an adaptation of his brilliant work to life on HBO," Mazin shared in a statement about the news. "I couldn't have asked for a more generous creative partner. As a true fan of Naughty Dog and Neil's work in video games, I'm beyond excited to play his next game. While he focuses on that, I'll continue to work with our brilliant cast and crew to deliver the show our audience has come to expect. We are so grateful to Neil and Halley Gross for entrusting the incredible story of 'The Last of Us Part II' to us, and we're just as grateful to the millions of people around the world who tune in."

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