'We Didn't Kill Him': Last of Us Creator Addresses Backlash Over the Fate of Pedro Pascal's Joel

The Last of Us series creator has a harsh reminder for fans regarding Pedro Pascal.

Speaking to Variety, The Last of Us streaming series creator Craig Mazin discussed how daunting it was to navigate the series' story in Season 2, particularly in regards to the death of star Pedro Pascal's Joel, who had led the series from the beginning alongside Bella Ramsey's Ellie. "He did a thing. Everyone lost their shit, and then I had to do that same thing, because he did the thing."

"I loved doing the thing, I thought it was great," Mazin added, referring to Joel's brutal death in the second episode of The Last of Us' second season.. "The big complaint that I’ve gotten is, ‘Why did you kill Pedro Pascal?’ And I keep explaining, we didn’t kill him! He’s a man, he’s alive," Mazin jokingly offered as a reminder to irate fans and upset audience members. "He’s fine. And he’s in literally everything else. So I don’t know what the problem is!"

Based on the video game series of the same name by developer Naughty Dog, The Last of Us premiered in 2023. The series was lauded by critics and audiences alike, many of whom consider it to be a testament to what can be achieved with a video game adaptation. The series' second season premiered earlier this year and drastically shook up the previously established status quo. Apart from Joel's shocking death so early on in the season, the final episode of The Last of Us Season 2 completely shifted the focus of the series altogether, and with a truly unsettling attack setting up everything to come in Season 3.

What Will The Last of Us Season 3 Be About?

With Joel and Ellie's stories having each come to a close, The Last of Us Season 3 is set to let Kaitlyn Dever's Abby take charge as the series' new lead. In the final moments of the Season 2 finale, audiences were brought back to "Day One" in Seattle, implying that Season 3 will follow Abby's journey in the time when Ellie was embarking upon her infamous quest for revenge. Mazin previously explained, "There is another side to this story that we have yet to really delve into. There's no question that Abby is the hero of her story. Kaitlyn Dever is the hero of a story, always. If you have a Kaitlyn Dever, you use a Kaitlyn Dever... all I can say is it will always be centering somebody, whether it's Ellie and Dina, or whether it's Abby and Abby's relationship with Owen or new relationships."