Well, we did not see this coming!
Neil Druckmann, the creator of The Last of Us video games and co-creator of the HBO series, has announced that he will be stepping away from the show ahead of its third season.
Druckmann was heavily involved with the first two seasons of the survival horror drama series as a showrunner, writer and executive producer alongside co-creator Craig Mazin, but has now decided to end his involvement in order to dedicate “complete focus” to Naughty Dog and the developer's future video game projects (whether one of those projects is a third The Last if Us game remains to be seen)..
“I’ve made the difficult decision to step away from my creative involvement in The Last of Us on HBO,” Druckmann said in a statement. “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.”
“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,” he added.
It's not clear how or if the creative direction of season 3 will be impacted by Druckmann's departure.
In a statement on his own, Mazin said: “It’s been a creative dream to work with Neil and bring an adaptation of his brilliant work to life on HBO. 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.”
This development is sure to come as a surprise to fans of the acclaimed series. Let us know what you make of the news in the comments.
New cast members for season 2 include Kaitlyn Dever (Booksmart) as Abby, Young Mazino (Beef) as Jesse, Danny Ramirez (Top Gun: Maverick) as Manny, Ariela Barer (How to Blow Up a Pipeline) as Mel, Tati Gabrielle (You) as Nora, and Spencer Lord (Heartland) as Owen.
The Last of Us is set 20 years after modern civilization has been destroyed and centers on the relationship between Joel, a smuggler in this new world, and Ellie, a teenager who may be key to a cure for a deadly pandemic. Joel, a hardened survivor, is hired to smuggle the 14-year-old girl out of an oppressive quarantine zone. What starts as a small job soon becomes a brutal, heartbreaking journey as they traverse the U.S. and depend on each other for survival.
Season 1's cast also featured Gabriel Luna as Tommy, Anna Torv as Tess, Nico Parker as Sarah, Murray Bartlett as Frank, Nick Offerman as Bill, Melanie Lynskey as Kathleen, Storm Reid as Riley, Merle Dandridge as Marlene, Jeffrey Pierce as Perry, Lamar Johnson as Henry, Keivonn Woodard as Sam, Graham Greene as Marlon, Elaine Miles as Florence, Ashley Johnson as Anna, and Troy Baker as James.