"Nothing But Tension & Distance": How Ellie & Joel's Fractured Relationship In The Last Of Us Sets The Tone For Season 2

Even South by Southwest 2025 can’t escape the apocalypse thanks to an advance look at The Last of Us season 2 courtesy of the show’s cast and creatives. HBO had a breakout hit on its hands with its adaptation of video game developer Naughty Dog’s chart-topping The Last of Us, but the second season ventures into even bolder territory. The Last of Us Part II garnered rave reviews from critics, but generated heated discussions thanks to unexpected and surprising story developments.

The Last of Us season 2 cast includes Pedro Pascal’s Joel, Bella Ramsey’s Ellie, and Gabriel Luna’s Tommy and introduces new characters from the second game in Abby (Kaitlyn Dever), Dina (Isabela Merced), and Jesse (Young Mazino). Co-creators Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann return for the second season as well, with both writing and directing episodes, with Halley Gross, who co-wrote The Last of Us Part II, joining as well. Druckmann also led the development of the original games at Naughty Dog.

ScreenRant’s Liam Crowley interviewed The Last of Us’ Neil Druckmann, Pedro Pascal, Gabriel Luna, Kaitlyn Dever, and Halley Gross at SXSW 2025. They discussed adapting Naughty Dog’s magnum opus for television, the fraught relationship between Joel and Ellie in the second season, and more. Plus, Pedro Pascal reveals how lucky his Uber drivers are.

In Season 2, There’s “Nothing But Tension And Distance” Between Joel & Ellie

Pedro Pascal Teases The Unraveling Of Their Relationship

The Last of Us season 1 ends with the audience left aware that Joel is keeping a massive secret from Ellie. When asked about that tension, however, Pedro Pascal clarified that, “I feel like [she and I] don’t end in a place of tension at the end of season one. I lie. I think the tension is more with the audience that knows what’s happened and knows that I’m lying to Ellie, ending the episode by making her a promise that isn’t true, which is the ultimate betrayal, in a way.”

Instead, Pascal defines the Joel and Ellie relationship at the end of season 1 as “falsely contained.” But, after a five-year time jump between the two seasons, “there is nothing but tension and distance between the two of them,” the actor said, “and a really interesting and heartbreaking unraveling as to why.”

Kaitlyn Dever Tried To Ignore Online Discourse About Abby

The Character Was A Controversial Addition To The Last Of Us Part II

The Last of Us Part II game caused quite a stir when it introduced the character of Abby and had players spend a large chunk of time with her throughout the story. The character has a large group of fans as well, with gamers of all opinions sounding off online. “It’s hard not to see those things on the internet,” Dever said. “It’s hard to stop myself from looking at it every once in a while, especially going into this.”

Dever’s priorities are in the right place, though: “I want to do this character justice and make the fans proud by bringing her to life, but my main focus was the collaboration between Neil and Craig, and making sure I was really getting to the core of who she is.” The actor worked to explore “what drives her, her emotional state, her anger, her frustration, her grief, and all of that.” Ultimately, said Dever, “I wanted to make sure that that was what I was focusing most of my energy on.”

Neil Druckmann & Halley Gross Talk Bringing Their Video Game Expertise To The Last Of Us Season 2

“It Was An Awesome Opportunity To Get To Revisit It”

Both Neil Druckmann and Halley Gross help craft the story and script for The Last of Us Part II. Even so, working on the show was a new experience. “Neil and I have a shorthand because we worked together for four and a half years,” Gross said, “But I’ve been a huge fan of Craig [Mazin] since I was in grad school listening to Scriptnotes. Getting that other perspective was a dream come true for 20-year-old me. It was awesome.”

In Druckmann’s words, “It was an awesome opportunity to get to revisit it with such talented people, and to see how much they put themselves into it.” He was quick to share his joy in co-writing the series as well: “It all starts in the writers’ room, where we just kind of pick and choose from the game–’What do we want to leave as-is? What do we want to change? What must be changed because it’s a different medium?’ That’s a really fun area, to just dream about it and fantasize about it.’

Gabriel Luna Talks Tommy’s Expanded Role In Season 2

“Uncle Tommy Is Now Papa Tommy”

Joel’s brother Tommy has a new set of priorities in The Last of Us season 2, revealed Gabriel Luna: “Uncle Tommy is now Papa Tommy, and that’s changed a lot of his perspective about how he needs to operate, [and] what he and his brother and the rest of his people in the security council need to do to make this the safest place it can be.” Luna went on to call Tommy “kind of the First Gentleman of the settlement,” as his wife Maria actually leads the community.

“It changes everything,” Luna continued, “I think he already had a pretty solid constitution, but having his family expanded in this way further solidifies what he’s really about. I can’t wait for people to see where it goes and, when duty calls, what’s required.”

Pedro Pascal Stays Tight-Lipped About Keeping Secrets For Big Franchises

But He Has Some Lucky Uber Drivers

Pascal had a fantastic answer when asked if it was harder to keep secrets for Marvel or The Last of Us, considering his other big franchise project The Fantastic Four: First Steps will be released in July. “Oh, I suck at both,” the actor quipped, “I tell my Uber drivers everything.” If you’ve driven Pascal around recently, lucky you.