The Last Of Us Season 3 (& Beyond) Is All But Guaranteed To Happen Now Thanks To Major Update

HBO’s Emmy-winning show The Last of Us will receive a second season, and it seems that season 3 is also on the horizon due to a new development from the games. The Last of Us is a TV adaptation of the game series of the same name, which has two installments. Both the show and games follow Ellie and Joel, a pair of survivors living through a zombie apocalypse who form an incredibly close bond. The show’s story was a recipe for success, and HBO renewed The Last of Us for season 2, which could easily be extended to multiple new seasons.

The Last of Us season 2 will see a continuation of Ellie and Joel’s story of survival. Since The Last of Us season 2 will follow the game’s story, it could feature a time jump from the first season’s ending as the game did. However, The Last of Us season 2 could make changes to the game’s story and take the show in its own direction and be a more direct continuation of its story. The show had an uncertain future, as it only had two games to adapt, but Ellie and Joel’s story in the show seems likely to continue beyond season 2 thanks to recent developments from the games.

The Last Of Us Part III Happening Means HBO Can Make More Seasons Eventually

One of the video game’s creators, Neil Druckmann, hinted that there is already a concept for The Last of Us Part III. There is currently no news about when the next game may release, but the new game shows there could soon be enough source material for a third season of The Last of Us. Druckmann only revealed that he had a concept for Part III, so the game is still years away from being completed. Though it will have to wait to adapt Part III, The Last of Us show could still enter its third season in the meantime.

The Last Of Us Season 3 Might Still Happen Before Part III’s Game

One of the show’s creators, Craig Mazin, has teased that The Last of Us Part II could provide material for two seasons of the show (via Deadline). Splitting The Last of Us Part II across multiple seasons could mean that The Last of Us season 3 could be released before the third game is completed. Developing a video game is a difficult process that often takes years, so expanding the second game to cover multiple seasons could buy time for the games’ developers, Naughty Dog, to finish production.

Having The Last of Us season 3 complete the second game’s story would avoid a host of potential problems. Waiting for the third game’s release would take years and create a large gap in time between seasons. Forcing fans to wait multiple years for an adaptation of The Last of Us Part III could hurt the show’s popularity and viewership, and that season would suffer for it. Splitting Part II into multiple seasons would keep the show’s popularity alive and reduce the amount of time fans have to spend waiting on a new season.

The Last Of Us Part III Makes The Show’s Plan More Realistic

Mazin also teased that The Last of Us could span more than four seasons (via The Hollywood Reporter). That previously seemed like an overly-ambitious goal due to the games only having two installments, but it has become far more likely since Druckmann revealed the possibility of Part III. Since the show could split Part II into multiple seasons, Part III could be used to create The Last of Us seasons 4 and 5 and deliver on Mazin’s plans for the show.

The Last of Us show is set up for multiple new seasons, and they promise to be faithful adaptations of both the released and upcoming video games. Departing from the storyline set up in the games could also be a great move for the show, though. One of The Last of Us‘ best episodes made large changes to the original game, and the show’s creators could do it again. While The Last of Us will likely have enough source material to work with thanks to a potential Part III, it doesn’t need to wait for the games to be great.

Sources: Deadline, The Hollywood Reporter

The Last Of Us

Release Date

January 15, 2023

Cast

Pedro Pascal , Bella Ramsey , Gabriel Luna , Anna Torv , Merle Dandridge , Nick Offerman , Jeffrey Pierce

Writers

Neil Druckmann , Craig Mazin