The future of “The Last of Us” is currently causing wild discussions among many fans. Although the acclaimed HBO series is set to continue with a third season, indications point to it being the final season. Thankfully, in a conversation with Deadline, HBO’s top executive, Casey Bloys, has not ruled out an end to the series after season 3.
“The Last of Us”: No Season 4?
Specifically, Bloys explained that the final decision has not yet been made concerning the series’ continuity. Nevertheless, he mentioned that HBO attaches great importance to a coherent, complete overall work — even if that means ending a successful series earlier than expected. This means a fourth season is not guaranteed.
The contrast with showrunner Craig Mazin is exciting. He repeatedly emphasized that the storyline of “The Last of Us” games can hardly be told in less than three or even four seasons. Apparently, there are different internal ideas about how much space the series should ultimately be given.
Only Season 3 Has Been Officially Confirmed to Date
For fans, this means only one thing: season 3 could be the last. We know that season 3 is coming and its content will continue to be based on the video game “The Last of Us Part II”. It remains to be seen whether the credits for the entire series will really roll after that or whether HBO will give the green light for a subsequent season.
Given the series’s success so far, an early end would be brave — but could also benefit the series if it was concluded without being creatively watered down. Part of this reasoning is that while the first season was widely acclaimed, the second season was widely panned for the narrative’s pace. The departure of audience favorite Pedro Pascal (Joel) obviously didn’t do the series any good either. Ellie’s series foster father now only appears in flashbacks, which hurts its ratings, and not just in the USA.
Changes to Season 3
The coming months should reveal which path HBO will take with the video game adaptation in a TV series format. The upcoming third season will definitely be exciting. This is because the co-showrunner Neil Druckman, creator and author of the video game series, will no longer be involved. This was also anything but well-received by many fans.
