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The Last of Us Season 2 Showrunners on Abby, Casting Kaitlyn Dever

The Last of Us' Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann on the second season's Abby being different from the video game and casting Kaitlyn Dever.


HBO kicked off the week with some new looks at Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann's Pedro Pascal (Joel) and Bella Ramsey (Ellie)-starring The Last of Us Season 2 that included Pascal, Ramsey, Gabriel Luna, Rutina Wesley, Young Mazino, Isabela Merced, Danny Ramirez, Tati Gabrielle, Ariela Barer, Kaitlyn Dever, and Spencer Lord. In addition, Mazin and Druckmann spent some time discussing the upcoming season and what the future could hold for the series during a profile interview with EW. For this go-around, the duo discussed their decision to cast Kaitlyn Dever in the key role of Abby and go with a less physically intimidating take on the character than the one performance-captured portrayed by Laura Bailey.

The Last Of Us
Image: HBO

"There's not as much violent action moment to moment. It's more about the drama. I'm not saying there's no action here. It's just, again, different priorities and how you approach it," Druckman said, explaining how Abby's physical presence is less of a priority in how they approach the season's overall narrative. "Kaitlyn has the spirit of the game in her," Druckmann added. "What I always loved about the idea was that you are going to continually be challenged as you were in season 1. When you try to pick a hero, it's tough because we're human beings; we're not heroes. For every heroic act, there's someone who suffers on the other side who may see you reasonably as a villain. When you look at Kaitlyn, there's just something in her eyes where, even no matter what she's experiencing, you connect. It was important that we found somebody that we could connect to the way we connect to Bella."

As Mazin sees it, a shift in how Abby is presented physically opens up new avenues to explore regarding the character. "I personally think that there is an amazing opportunity here to delve into someone who is perhaps physically more vulnerable than the Abby in the game, but whose spirit is stronger," he explained. "And then the question is, 'Where does her formidable nature come from, and how does it manifest?' That's something that will be explored now and later."

With Season 2 set to hit HBO & Max screens in 2025, Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey will be joined this season by Gabriel Luna as Tommy, Rutina Wesley as Maria, Kaitlyn Dever as Abby, Isabela Merced as Dina, Young Mazino as Jesse, Ariela Barer as Mel, Tati Gabrielle as Nora, Spencer Lord as Owen, Jeffrey Wright as Isaac, Danny Ramirez as Manny, and Catherine O'Hara. Behind the camera, Mazin and Druckmann will be joined by Peter Hoar (S01E03: "Long, Long Time") are Mark Mylod (HBO's Succession), Nina Lopez-Corrado (HBO's Perry Mason), Stephen Williams (HBO's Watchmen) and Kate Herron (Loki).

HBO's The Last of Us is written and executive-produced by Mazin and Druckmann. The series is a co-production with Sony Pictures Television and is also executive-produced by Carolyn Strauss, Jacqueline Lesko, Cecil O'Connor, Asad Qizilbash, Carter Swan, and Evan Wells. PlayStation Productions, Word Games, The Mighty Mint, and Naughty Dog serve as the production companies.


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Ray FlookAbout Ray Flook

Serving as Television Editor since 2018, Ray began five years earlier as a contributing writer/photographer before being brought onto the core BC team in 2017.
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