The second season of the HBO hit "The Last of Us" is set to arrive this April with seven new episodes that will reunite fans with the likes of Pedro Pascal's Joel Miller and Bella Ramsey's Ellie five years after the action of the first season. But per that intense season 2 trailer, the new eps will also introduce viewers to a new character, one that's been eagerly awaited by longtime fans of the video-game franchise that inspired the post-apocalyptic drama series.
Kaitlyn Dever — who TV fans most recently saw leading the Netflix miniseries "Apple Cider Vinegar" — is taking on the role of Abby, "a skilled soldier whose black-and-white view of the world is challenged as she seeks vengeance for those she loved," per HBO. We meet Abby among a group of survivors that includes Owen (Spencer Lord), Mel (Ariela Barer), Nora (Tati Gabrielle), and Manny (Danny Ramirez).
Given that Abby is quite a contentious personality among players of "The Last of Us" video games — the backlash reportedly got bad enough that gamers sent death threats to actress Laura Baily, who voiced Abby in the video games — it's understandable that casting for the character would draw scrutiny. However, the show's creators Neil Druckmann and Craig Mazin recently told Entertainment Weekly that they didn't feel they had to adhere closely to the game character, specifically in reference to Abby's well-muscled physicality, when it came to hiring Dever to play the role.
"We value performance over anything else," Druckmann tells the outlet. "We need someone to really capture the essence of those characters .... We don't value as much, 'Do they look exactly like the character with their eyebrows or their nose or their body?' Whatever it is. It's not nowhere on the priority list, but it's below a bunch of other things that we consider."
“We would've struggled to find someone as good as Kaitlyn to play this role" had they only searched by looks, Druckmann explained. “In the game, you have to play both characters [Ellie and Abby] and we need them to play differently. We needed Ellie to feel smaller and kind of maneuver around, and Abby was meant to play more like Joel in that she's almost like a brute in the way she can physically manhandle certain things. That doesn't play as big of a role in this version of the story because there's not as much violent action moment to moment. It's more about the drama. I'm not saying there's no action here. It's just, again, different priorities and how you approach it.”
Druckmann also praised the "Booksmart" actress for having "the spirit of the game in her," adding: "When you look at Kaitlyn, there's just something in her eyes where, even no matter what she's experiencing, you connect. It was important that we found somebody that we could connect to the way we connect to Bella."
Dever herself discussed in a February 2025 interview for Variety what it was like playing such a polarizing character: “I think it is always hard stepping into that, especially because it’s already had its [first] season and I’m the newbie to the world. But I think that I’m almost treating it and approaching it like I do with everything, which is just wanting to come at it with authenticity and honesty and trying to be as organic as I can when approaching the role and bringing my own sort of energy to it, if that makes sense. I want to do the character justice, and I hope that people enjoy what I do with that.”
"The Last of Us" season 2 release date has been set for April 13 on HBO and Max. Tom's Guide will keep you posted on all updates regarding the show's action-packed second season, including behind-the-scenes tidbits, character details, new teaser clips and more.
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