The Last Of Us Season 2's New Character & Joel Dynamic Teased By Catherine O'Hara

The Last of Us season 2 newcomer Catherine O'Hara teases her character's complex dynamic with Pedro Pascal's Joel, as well as what's to come from the season as a whole. Based on the hit Naughty Dog video game, the hit HBO post-apocalyptic drama premiered in 2023, following Joel and Bella Ramsey's Ellie as they traverse an America overrun by infected. The Last of Us season 2 is set to introduce a handful of fresh faces into the mix, including Isabela Merced, Kaitlyn Dever, Young Mazino, Jeffrey Wright, and O'Hara, who trailers tease could serve as Joel's therapist.

In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, O'Hara offers up some more details on The Last of Us season 2 and how her character fits into the mix. While the actor's comments are short on specific details, she does tease that her character will have a humorous side. "You can't take that out of your life," O'Hara says of the balance between humor and drama. "And when you do, it makes for a very dull performance." The actor also addresses how this balance affects her dynamic with Joel in the show:

"I have an odd relationship with Pedro's character. You don't quite know why she's got...well, she's got this edge to her, but it makes for some weird, good dark comedy, I think. So it's there. I never want to deny the gift of humor."

O'Hara also teases that viewers are in for an especially "intense" season, before gushing about what it was like to work with Pascal and Ramsey on set:

"It's so intense, and the second [season] is way more intense if you know the game. I just love working with Pedro Pascal. Both of them. Bella. Wow. Was that intimating? It always is. It's not my territory.... You're just like, thank you for inviting me and I'll try to be a good guest. But they were very kind to me and it was great."

What Catherine O'Hara's Casting Means For The Last Of Us Season 2

How The Season 1 Finale Sets Up Her Joel Dynamic

Though many details regarding O'Hara's new character remain unknown, the trailers for The Last of Us season 2 show her speaking in a therapy-session-like setting with an emotional Joel. This would fit with the events of season 1 and the trauma Pascal's character endures, as well as the choices he makes. The Last of Us season 1 finale features Joel killing an entire hospital full of Fireflies to save Ellie, who is revealed to be immune to Cordyceps. His actions save the surrogate daughter figure in his life, but they also deprive the world of a potential cure.

It's possible that part of the storyline for season 2 will see Joel coming to terms not only with the great amount of blood on his hands, but with the fact that he may have just doomed all of humankind. O'Hara's The Last of Us season 2 character and her therapy sessions with Joel could be an interesting way to explore Joel's troubled state of mind, while also offering up some levity in a show that is otherwise extremely dark, serious, and often tragic.

Our Take On O'Hara's The Last Of Us Season 2 Comments

O'Hara's Character Could Leave A Big Mark

O'Hara is one of a number of several exciting additions to The Last of Us season 2's cast, and each new actor is set to shake up the story in some major ways. Arguably the newcomers who will have the biggest impact on the series are Dever as Abby and Merced as Dina, with O'Hara perhaps proving more minor in the grand scheme of things. As was seen in The Last of Us season 1, though, even more minor supporting characters can really shine in this show, and they can make a big impact even with relatively limited screen time.