The Last of Us Season 2 is feeling the effects of the writers’ strike.
According to a person familiar with the production, preparations were already underway to cast the second season of the hit HBO series until it was shelved earlier this week.
Previously, however, multiple sources said the casting team asked the actors to read pages taken directly from The Last of Us Part II, the video game that the second season will be based on, since such exist There are currently no scripts for season 2. The hope is that filming for the season can begin in early 2024 in Vancouver.
The lack of scripts for season two is not at all surprising given that series co-creator and showrunner Craig Mazin has been spotted in the strike line alongside his fellow Writers Guild of America (WGA) for the past few days. In accordance with WGA strike guidelines, he is not currently writing or producing Season 2 (including his involvement in the casting). Likewise, Neil Druckmann, who helped create the series and served as a writer and creative director for the games, is not currently working in a capacity on the second season of the series.
Mazin wrote the bulk of The Last of Us’ nine-episode first season, while he and Druckmann co-wrote the series premiere and finale. Druckmann also wrote the seventh episode “Left Behind” alone. The series premiered on HBO in January and received rave reviews and strong ratings. The season finale alone attracted 8.2 million viewers, breaking the series’ own viewership record.
After airing just two episodes, the series was quickly renewed for a second season, with stars Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey set to return as Joel and Ellie.
Since the strike began on May 2, numerous productions have been affected, with major series such as “Andor” on Disney+ and “Stranger Things” on Netflix being discontinued. However, as Variety previously reported, the second season of HBO’s Game of Thrones prequel House of the Dragon remains in production, as does the second season of Amazon’s The Lord of the Rings: The Power Rings.