Kaitlyn Dever cast as Abby in The Last of Us season 2

After months of speculation about who will play Abby in The Last of Us season 2, we have official confirmation at last: Kaitlyn Dever has been cast to play this crucial role. Abby's importance to the future of HBO's The Last of Us show cannot be understated; from here on, she'll be just as much at the heart of the story as Joel (Pedro Pascal) or Ellie (Bella Ramsey). We won't get into all the spoilers here, but suffice it to say there is a very good reason why we've all been so eager to see who will play the part.

Showrunners Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann released a statement about the news, which is how we know that Dever's casting is official-official. “Our casting process for Season 2 has been identical to Season 1: We look for world-class actors who embody the souls of the characters in the source material. Nothing matters more than talent, and we’re thrilled to have an acclaimed performer like Kaitlyn join Pedro [Pascal], Bella [Ramsey] and the rest of our family.”

Dever will be a fresh face to many genre TV fans, but she has quite a few credits to her name. These include Justified, Unbelievable, Dopesick, and Monsterland on the small screen, as well as movies like No One Will Save You, Booksmart and Dear Evan Hansen. Abby is a character with a pretty intense journey in The Last of Us Part II video game, so it's going to demand some pretty serious acting chops. I can't wait to see Dever in the part!

I also can't wait to see how the fandom handles the introduction of this character. The response among video game players to Abby's introduction in The Last of Us Part II was notoriously controversial. Here's hoping things go a little bit smoother for the TV adaptation—and that at the very least Dever doesn't have to deal with any of the vitriol that Abby game actor Laura Bailey did upon the game's release.

The Last of Us released its first season right around a year ago to widespread acclaim. It just took home eight Creative Arts Emmys this past weekend. Anticipation has been high for season 2, which will air on HBO sometime in 2025. It's due to begin filming next month.

But hey, maybe you don't want to wait a whole other year to find out what the deal is with Abby. If that's the case, The Last of Us Part II Remastered also releases exclusively on PlayStation 5 on January 19.

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h/t TV Line