The Last of Us season 2 adds Loki and Succession directors

The Last of Us was a huge success for HBO when it premiered in January 2023. Led by Pedro Pascal (Joel) and Bella Ramsey (Ellie), the post-apocalyptic drama had all the heart of Naughty Dog's video game. It was an instant hit among fans, so much that HBO renewed it for a new season after just three episodes had aired.tthe

Looking ahead to season 2, which is currently scheduled to commence filming in February, the production crew is coming together nicely. Showrunners Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann have enlisted the skills of some of the industry's most coveted directors.

Per Deadline, four new directors are attached to the new season. Firstly, there's Kate Herron, who reached wide acclaim for her work on Disney+'s MCU series Loki. Then there's Emmy-winning Succession director Mark Mylod, who also directed several episodes of Game of Thrones. Watchmen director Stephen Williams and Perry Mason's Nina Lopez-Corrado are on board. And Peter Hoar and Craig Mazin, both of whom directed episodes for season 1, will return.

Currently, we don't know how many episodes each director will cover, but they certainly have their work cut out for them. The second season of the show will be based on the video game The Last of Us: Part II, which is a significantly larger game than the first. On average it takes players around 15 hours to complete the first game, while it can take upwards of 24 hours to complete Part II. Craig Mazin has already revealed that the show will look at spreading out the second game over two or more seasons of television.

Play time is one thing, but the story is another thing entirely. And Part II dials everything up to 11. There's a host of new characters, the world is hugely expanded, and the story is much more complicated, with a wider scope. "It's a big animal to take apart, you know?" he said. "Because it's a much bigger story and it's a more complicated story. It's a beautiful story," he told IGN. "It's more than a season's worth of television, for sure."

HBO has not set a release date for The Last of Us season 2 yet. Expect it to hit screens sometime in 2025.

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