The second season of HBO's The Last of Us is fast approaching its 2025 release date and many are interested in seeing how the TV series will adapt Naughty Dog's game The Last of Us Part 2. While the first season of The Last of Us covered the original game in its entirety, it's expected more than one season will be required to cover all the content in The Last of Us Part 2, which raises the question of which parts of the game will make it into the upcoming second season.
The Last of Us Part 2 continues the story of Joel and Ellie, picking things up five years after their journey in the first game. The second game is significantly larger than the first and, at times, it also presents the story in non-chronological order. This presents a challenge for the TV adaptation as the creatives need to determine the best order of events for viewers of The Last of Us series, who will experience the story differently to players of the game.
The Last of Us Season 2 Teaser Includes A Crucial Joel and Ellie Scene
The first teaser trailer for The Last of Us season 2 revealed some of the key scenes from the game that will be included in the TV series. Season 1 of The Last of Us stuck incredibly closely to its source material, which was welcomed by fans of the game and new viewers alike. In season 2, it appears that will continue, with many familiar scenes from the game making an appearance, including Joel giving Ellie guitar lessons and Ellie and Dina's first day in Seattle. However, one surprising scene also appears in the season 2 teaser.
At one point in the trailer, Ellie (Bella Ramsey), dressed in a winter coat, can be seen watching Joel (Pedro Pascal) as he plays guitar on the front porch of his house in Jackson. This scene directly mirrors one from The Last of Us Part 2 that plays an important part in the endgame of the story. Throughout the second The Last of Us game, Ellie is trying to come to terms with Joel's death at the hands of Abby, which results in many of the scenes between Joel and Ellie coming via flashback.
One of these flashbacks occurs at a crucial point towards the end of the game, right when Ellie is about to get revenge on Abby. As she is holding Abby underwater, Ellie thinks back to the conversation between her and Joel on the porch that night. Before this point in the timeline, Ellie had cut off her relationship with Joel in retaliation for his lying to her about what happened at the Salt Lake City hospital at the end of the first game. During their conversation on the porch, Ellie starts to absolve Joel of this action, saying "I don't think I can ever forgive you for that, but I'd like to try." This flashback occurs at a crucial time in the third act of The Last of Us Part 2, as it leads Ellie to decide whether she can forgive Abby as well.
It's surprising then, to see this scene included in the trailer for season 2 of HBO's The Last of Us. With the creators confirming that the story of The Last of Us Part 2 will be told across multiple seasons, it's expected that season 2 will only get part-way through that story, with clips from the trailer indicating it may only cover the first third of the game. But as noted, this scene on the porch plays out at the end of the game, which means The Last of Us Season 2 may play with the chronology of the timeline for the series adaptation.
It's expected that The Last of Us season 2 will make some changes to the game, and including this scene earlier in the story could be one of them. It's also possible the porch scene may only be included as a brief snippet in Ellie's thoughts, which is a tactic often used in The Last of Us Part 2 to showcase her PTSD from Joel's death. The full conversation between Joel and Ellie may end up being held for a later season that covers the end of the game. However, it is interesting that this pivotal scene has seemingly already been filmed for the series adaptation, which means there's a chance it could appear on-screen as early as season 2.
What Happens Between Joel and Ellie in The Last of Us Part 2?
After the first game bonded Joel and Ellie in their father-daughter dynamic, Naughty Dog's second The Last of Us game puts that bond to the test. One of the main questions coming away from The Last of Us Part 1 is whether Ellie believes Joel's lie about the Fireflies already having a cure for the infection, which was his attempt to cover the truth that he murdered them all to save her. This question is answered in The Last of Us Part 2 when Ellie investigates the hospital and finds out the truth about what Joel did, which fractures their relationship.
The breaking and eventual mending of their relationship is covered in flashbacks throughout The Last of Us Part 2, which are interspersed throughout Ellie's journey in the current timeline, which sees her seeking vengeance for Joel's death. Ellie is pushed to the limit in Seattle as she is forced to reckon with how far she is willing to go to enact revenge, particularly for someone she had such a tenuous relationship with. Ultimately, however, it's proven in the porch scene that Joel is someone Ellie deeply loves despite his lies to her, and this comes as quite a cathartic twist in the game's story.
The bond between Joel and Ellie formed the heart of The Last of Us season 1 and viewers are invested in seeing how it plays out in future seasons. Regardless of what chronology the TV adaptation follows, the relationship between Joel and Ellie will no doubt continue to be at the core of The Last of Us season 2.
The Last of Us season 2 will be released on HBO in 2025.
