The Last of Us Renewed for Season Two

HBO has ordered a second season of its post-apocalyptic drama The Last of Us, based on Naughty Dog’s hit video game franchise.

The show, which marked HBO’s second largest debut, follows as hardened survivor Joel is hired to smuggle 14-year-old Ellie out of an oppressive quarantine zone across the brutal landscape of the U.S. 20 years after the start of a fungal pandemic. Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey star in the lead roles.

The Last of Us comes from co-creators Craig Mazin (creator of HBO’s Chernobyl) and Neil Druckmann (creator and writer of the The Last of Us video game franchise and co-president of Naughty Dog).

Additional cast members for season one include Gabriel Luna, Anna Torv, Nico Parker, Murray Bartlett, Nick Offerman, Melanie Lynskey, Storm Reid, Merle Dandridge, Jeffrey Pierce, Lamar Johnson, Keivonn Woodard, Graham Greene and Elaine Miles, as well as Ashley Johnson and Troy Baker.

New episodes of the series debut on Sunday nights at 9 p.m. ET/PT on HBO and are available to stream on HBO Max. The season one finale is set for March 12.

“Craig and Neil, alongside EP Carolyn Strauss and the rest of our phenomenal cast and crew, have defined a genre with their masterful debut season of The Last of Us,” said Francesca Orsi, executive VP of HBO programming and head of HBO drama series and films. “After pulling off this unforgettable first season, I can’t wait to watch this team outshine themselves again with season two.”

“I’m humbled, honored and frankly overwhelmed that so many people have tuned in and connected with our retelling of Joel and Ellie’s journey,” Druckmann said. “The collaboration with Craig Mazin, our incredible cast and crew and HBO exceeded my already high expectations. Now we have the absolute pleasure of being able to do it again with season two! On behalf of everyone at Naughty Dog and PlayStation, thank you!”

“I’m so grateful to Neil Druckmann and HBO for our partnership, and I’m even more grateful to the millions of people who have joined us on this journey,” Mazin added. “The audience has given us the chance to continue, and as a fan of the characters and world Neil and Naughty Dog created, I couldn’t be more ready to dive back in.”