The Last Of Us Co-Creator Craig Mazin Says They Are Planning On A Season 3 'Unless People Don't Watch'

At this point, it seems safe to say that "The Last of Us" has turned out to be a massive success for HBO. The series surpassed nearly everyone's expectations for it, including some fans of its original video game source material. Not only did the show destroy viewership records for HBO while it was on the air, but it recently emerged as a recurring title among the 2023 Emmy nominations. Of course, the series' success also resulted in fans beginning to ask questions about "The Last of Us" Season 2 immediately after the conclusion of its first batch of episodes.

For a few weeks, it seemed like the show wouldn't extend past two seasons. That assumption was based on some comments from showrunners Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann, as well as the fact that only two "Last of Us" video games have been released up to this point. However, Mazin has confirmed that both he and Druckmann plan to let the events of 2020's "The Last of Us Part II" play out across, at the very least, two seasons. That said, the screenwriter also notes that viewers will only get to see a third season of "The Last of Us" if they engage enough with its second.

Indeed, when he was asked about his and Druckmann's strategy for adapting "The Last of Us Part II," Mazin told Deadline, "It's going to be more than one season. There's more story, so this show will not end with Season 2 unless people don't watch it and we'll get canceled."

Given the success of both "The Last of Us" Season 1 and "The Last of Us Part II," it seems unlikely that the HBO series will be canceled before it gets the chance to wrap up its story. That's not an impossibility, especially considering how divisive certain elements of its plot are destined to be, but the odds of that happening seem extremely slim.

Disregarding its potential cancellation, fans are understandably curious about how faithfully both Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann intend to bring the infamously controversial story of "The Last of Us Part II" to life on-screen. Mazin, for his part, seems intent on spoiling as little as possible about the HBO series' future episodes. He did, however, tell Deadline that his and Druckmann's plan includes changes that will surprise even those who have played "The Last of Us Part II."

"We will be doing some things exactly the way they were in the game," the "Chernobyl" writer said. "We're gonna do some things that are in the game but we're gonna do them differently in our own method. No matter if you have played the game or not. You will be surprised as the season unfolds. We have some interesting twists and turns."

Taking into account the complex, non-linear structure of "The Last of Us Part II," it likely won't come as much of a surprise to gamers that the HBO series is going to change certain aspects of its story. What remains to be seen is whether or not Druckmann and Mazin's changes result in "The Last of Us" Seasons 2 and 3 being received with more unanimous praise than their source material.