With both the actors and writers strikes behind us, Hollywood is finally gearing up to get back to work on new shows and movies. That includes the highly-anticipated second season of The Last of Us, HBO’s post-apocalyptic drama based on the beloved video game series by Naughty Dog. The show’s first season was an instant hit when it premiered in early 2023; following the strikes, season 2 is expected to go into production in early 2024.
The Last of Us season 2 is adapting part of The Last of Us Part II video game, which takes place a number of years after the first and features a lot of new characters. As such, the show’s cast will expand in some major ways, most notably with the addition of Abby Anderson, a rival to Ellie (Bella Ramsey).
We’ve been hearing rumblings about potential actors for Abby since just after The Last of Us season 1 ended. According to entertainment blogger Jeff Sneider, the series is reportedly close to casting Kaitlyn Dever for the role. Best known for her time on the TV series Booksmart, Dever reportedly made such a huge impression with her appearance in Hulu’s alien invasion film No One Will Save You that it helped get her closer to securing the role of Abby.
Will Kaitlyn Dever play Abby in The Last of Us season 2?
Beyond all of Dever’s screen experience, she’s also a familiar name to some Naughty Dog fans. She leant her talents to the fourth Uncharted game, A Thief’s End, where she appeared as Nathan Drake and Elena Fisher’s daughter Cassie.
It’s fitting that Dever might be up for playing Ellie’s big rival in The Last of Us season 2; she was actually up for the part of Ellie back when the show was first casting. She even participated in a table read. However, according to Eurogamer, casting for The Last of Us season 1 took long enough that many of the actors originally in consideration for Ellie aged out of the part; that seemingly included Dever, who is 26 years old as of this writing, six years older than Bella Ramsey. That won’t be a problem for season 2 though, since Abby is an adult by the time The Last of Us Part II gets going.
Neither showrunner Craig Mazin, HBO, nor Dever’s reps responded to Sneider’s requests for comment, but HBO stressed that no castings for The Last of Us season 2 are official as of yet. With the show’s production window creeping up, that’s sure to change in the coming months.
The Last of Us season 2 goes into production early next year; expect to see it on your TV screens sometime in 2025. We’ll be on the lookout for more updates.
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