The second season of The Last of Us has found its Abby. Kaitlyn Dever (Booksmart) is set to join the HBO series that stars Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsay in the adaptation of Naughty Dog’s The Last of Us Part II.
Alongside Ellie, Abby is the second playable character in The Last of Us Part II as her journey brings her into contact with Joel and Ellie with dramatic consequences. She was voiced by voice actress Laura Bailey who has starred in several animated series, video games and other projects such as The Legend of Vox Machina, Insomniac’s Spider-Man games and Critical Role. She even had a cameo appearance in the first season finale of The Last of Us as one of the nurses prepping Ellie for her fatal operation.
HBO has described Abby as “a skilled soldier whose black-and-white view of the world is challenged as she seeks vengeance for those she loved.”
“Our casting process for season two has been identical to season one: we look for world-class actors who embody the souls of the characters in the source material,” said Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann, The Last of Us co-creators, writers, executive producers and directors. “Nothing matters more than talent, and we’re thrilled to have an acclaimed performer like Kaitlyn join Pedro, Bella and the rest of our family.”
The second season is expected to begin production in Vancouver beginning in February with an aim for a 2025 premiere.
The Last of Us has been nominated for several awards in various ceremonies for its first season. Just this weekend was the Golden Globes and while Pascal and Ramsay did not win in their respective acting categories, both Nick Offerman and Storm Reid who guest starred won for Best Guest Actor and Actress at the Creative Arts Emmy Awards the night prior to the Globes. Next weekend will be the Emmy Awards where The Last of Us is nominated for Best Drama with Pascal and Ramsay nominated in the acting categories, Peter Hoar directing and Craig Mazin writing Offerman’s episode ‘Long, Long Time’.
The Last of Us story takes place twenty years after modern civilization has been destroyed. Joel, a hardened survivor, is hired to smuggle Ellie, a 14-year-old girl, out of an oppressive quarantine zone. What starts as a small job soon becomes a brutal, heartbreaking journey, as they both must traverse the U.S. and depend on each other for survival.
The Last of Us stars Pedro Pascal (The Mandalorian) as Joel and Bella Ramsey (Game of Thrones) as Ellie alongside Gabriel Luna, Merle Dandridge, Jeffrey Pierce, Anna Torv, Nico Parker, Murray Bartlett, Nick Offerman, Lamar Johnson, Storm Reid, Keivonn Woodard, Graham Greene and Elaine Miles.
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