One of the most anticipated pop culture returns of 2025 is almost here: The Last of Us<\/em>, HBO\u2019s hit video game adaptation starring Bella Ramsey and Pedro Pascal. Talking about season two<\/a> has been a particularly delicate matter for those involved in the series, in the interest of not spoiling the plot for viewers who might not have played The Last of Us Part II<\/em><\/a> game.<\/p>\n But there\u2019s no avoiding certain elements, like the fact that Kaitlyn Dever<\/a> is joining the cast to play the key role of Abby<\/a>. In a new interview with Entertainment Weekly<\/a>, showrunners Neil Druckmann and Craig Mazin talked about the character\u2014carefully.<\/p>\n As it turns out, Dever has a history with The Last of Us<\/em>, if not specifically with Abby. Back when the game was being considered for a feature film adaptation, Druckmann revealed, actors gathered for an early table read\u2014including Dever, who was then the right age for Ramsey\u2019s character, Ellie. They stayed in touch, and \u201cI believe Craig had the idea of using Kaitlyn for Abby when we talked about season two,\u201d Druckmann said. \u201cThe reason we cast Kaitlyn is because she\u2019s an incredible actor… We value performance over anything else.\u201d<\/p>\n Dever\u2019s talents will get a workout playing the complex character, and she\u2019ll be putting her own spin on Abby beyond what fans of the game have experienced. The Last of Us<\/em> showrunners are already trying to get ahead of anyone who wants to complain about the differences between \u201cgame Abby\u201d and \u201cshow Abby,\u201d including the fact that Dever is smaller in stature than Laura Bailey, who portrayed her in the game.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s not as much violent action moment to moment,\u201d Druckmann said of the series version of the character. \u201cIt\u2019s more about the drama. I\u2019m not saying there\u2019s no<\/i> action here. It\u2019s just, again, different priorities and how you approach it.\u201d<\/p>\n He continued, very vaguely revealing a tiny bit more about Abby as a character. \u201cWhen you try to pick a hero, it\u2019s tough because we\u2019re human beings, we\u2019re not<\/i> heroes. For every heroic act, there\u2019s someone who suffers on the other side who may see you reasonably as a villain. When you look at Kaitlyn, there\u2019s just something in her eyes where, even no matter what she\u2019s experiencing, you connect. It was important that we found somebody that we could connect to the way we connect to Bella.\u201d<\/p>\n Mazin noted that Dever\u2019s Abby is \u201cperhaps physically more vulnerable than the Abby in the game, but [her] spirit is stronger. And then the question is, \u2018Where does her formidable nature come from and how does it manifest?\u2019 That\u2019s something that will be explored now and later.\u201d<\/p>\n The Last of Us<\/em> returns to HBO and Max in April.<\/p>\n Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel<\/a>, Star Wars<\/a>, and Star Trek<\/a> releases, what\u2019s next for the DC Universe on film and TV<\/a>, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n The Last of Us Season 2: What to Expect One of the most anticipated pop culture returns of 2025 is almost here: The Last of Us, HBO\u2019s hit video game…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":3229,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[47],"tags":[721,722,723],"class_list":["post-3228","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news","tag-hbo","tag-kaitlyn-dever","tag-the-last-of-us"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/fusionmindlabs.com\/blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/02\/last-of-us-season-2-hbo-abby.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fusionmindlabs.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3228","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fusionmindlabs.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fusionmindlabs.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fusionmindlabs.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3228"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/fusionmindlabs.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3228\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fusionmindlabs.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3229"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fusionmindlabs.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3228"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fusionmindlabs.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3228"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fusionmindlabs.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3228"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Joining the Cast: Kaitlyn Dever as Abby<\/h2>\n
A History with The Last of Us<\/h3>\n
Dever\u2019s Talents and Approach to the Role<\/h4>\n
Understanding Abby\u2019s Complexity<\/h5>\n
The Last of Us Returns to HBO and Max in April<\/h1>\n
Stay Up-to-Date with io9 News<\/h2>\n
Source Link<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"