Craig Mazin has hinted that he may have found someone who’s perfect to play Abby in The Last of Us season 2. The showrunner stated that this character was the show’s main priority, but the search was put on hold due to the ongoing strikes.
Mazin shared his process when it came to his casting process for this major character, stating that he has a good track record of surprising people. This trend was something he wanted to continue, and he felt that his casting choice was right (via The Hollywood Reporter).
We’ve got a pretty good track record of making major cast announcements and people going, “Really?” which will probably continue. So people may disagree, but I think we got it right so far and the audience seems to feel we got it right and the Academy seems to feel we got it right.
The Last of Us and Chernobyl showrunner didn’t share any of the names he has been eyeing for the role. However, one has been making the rounds lately. Industry insider MyTimeToShineHello namedropped The Wilds star Shannon Berry on X (formerly Twitter), hours after THR published its interview. Berry has been a fan contender for the role since January, however, neither the actress nor the showrunners commented on the rumors.
Aside from the casting update, Mazin suggested that The Last of Us could run for four seasons following the show’s successful debut, despite the video game franchise it is based on only having two installments. It was also reported that auditions used the video game script due to the ongoing writers’ strike before production was paused.
The show’s lead, Pedro Pascal, claimed that shooting for the second season would begin sometime this year. However, HBO’s Head of Drama, Francesca Orsi, stated that multiple drama programs are currently on hold, and the release of season 2 was pushed to 2025.
The Last of Us turned out to be a massive success following its release, prompting season two to be greenlit just two weeks after the show came out. Season one boasts a high critics’ score of 96 percent and an audience score of 89 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, and received 24 Primetime Emmy Nominations. All episodes of The Last of Us so far are available to stream on Max.