Cameras are rolling on The Last Of Us Season 3, and new set photos and footage have given the clearest look yet at where the story is headed. The images show Kaitlyn Dever as Abby Anderson and Kyriana Kratter as Lev, with the pair appearing to prepare for a gunfight.
The reveal matters because the series is shifting its center of gravity toward Abby after Season 2 may have framed her as a villain. That turn puts Dever’s character at the middle of the show’s next chapter, with Lev beside her as the action moves forward.
Last month, HBO CEO Casey Bloys said The Last of Us will end with Season 3, leaving the upcoming run as the likely final stretch of the television adaptation. When asked about that prospect, Bloys said, “It certainly seems that way, but on decisions like that, we will defer to the showrunners. So you can ask them.”
That makes the current production push more than a routine return to set. Season 3 is expected to premiere on HBO next year, and it arrives after a major creative shift behind the camera. Neil Druckmann confirmed last September that he decided to step down as co-showrunner just as work was beginning on Season 3, leaving Craig Mazin in sole control of the series.
Druckmann said at the time that it had become “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.” He added, “I looked at what’s in front of me, what 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.” He also said, “The biggest one that takes up most of my time is Intergalactic: The Heretic Profit, our next big IP for Naughty Dog and PlayStation,” and that, “It felt like I could better serve all of my responsibilities if I stayed at a higher level.”
In the games, Abby is a member of the Fireflies whose father, Jerry Anderson, was killed by Joel Miller, and her mission becomes vengeance for that loss before she travels with Lev. Lev, a former member of the Seraphites, forms a bond with Abby alongside his sister Yara as Abby fights on behalf of the Washington Liberation Front. That backdrop suggests the next batch of episodes is not just changing point of view, but reopening the question of how much the show has been hiding in plain sight. If the early footage is any guide, The Last Of Us is preparing to make Abby’s side of the story impossible to dismiss.
