If There Is No The Last of Us 3, Would Naughty Dog's Neil Druckmann Keep the TV Show Going Past the Games?

Amid swirling speculation about the future of The Last of Us video game series, fans are eagerly awaiting what might come next, especially after HBO's series Seasons 2 and 3 are set to adapt the events of the second video game. Earlier this month, series creator Neil Druckmann stirred the pot by suggesting that fans shouldn't count on a third installment, stating, “I guess the only thing I would say is don’t bet on there being more of ‘Last of Us.’ This could be it.”

This raises a compelling question: If there's no The Last of Us 3, will Naughty Dog and Druckmann continue the TV show beyond the scope of the games? IGN posed this very question to Druckmann at the premiere of The Last of Us Season 2, and he responded thoughtfully. Druckmann emphasized that he always crafts an ending for his stories, even when unsure about future projects. He said, “I have to have an ending. When I made The Last of Us 1, I didn’t know if there was going to be a sequel, so that had to be a definitive ending. When I worked on Uncharted 4, I don’t know if we’ll ever get to do it again. I need it to be a definitive ending. Last of Us 2, same way. All these things have to line up.”

Druckmann further elaborated on his approach to storytelling, explaining, “I don’t know how long I’ll keep doing this or whether I’ll be given another opportunity. So I leave nothing on the line. Right now it’s like, we have an ending in mind. And that ending will be it. That ending will be it for this story.”

The possibility of Druckmann dedicating time to The Last of Us 3 is clouded by his current commitments. He's deeply involved with the TV series, which will conclude the events of The Last of Us 2 over its next two seasons, and he's also working on a new PlayStation game, Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet. Druckmann shared, “As far as everything else, and you’re asking me about future games, my time so much is, we have to finish this season. We’re not quite done. We’re almost there. Knock on wood we get to do it again. Season 3, there’s a lot more story we have to cover, as you know with game two. And then my hands are pretty full with Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet.”

The Last of Us Season 2 Character Posters

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However, hope isn't entirely lost for fans yearning for more of the series. In February 2024, Druckmann hinted at a "concept" for a potential The Last of Us 3 during the documentary Grounded 2: Making The Last of Us Part 2, saying, "The first game had such a clean concept of like, the unconditional love a parent feels for their child. The second one, once we landed on this idea of the pursuit of justice at any cost, justice for the ones you love, we felt like, 'there's a clean concept here and there's a throughline from the first game, about love.' If we never get to do it again, this is a fine ending point. Last bite of the apple, the story's done."

He continued, emphasizing Naughty Dog's supportive environment, "The great thing about working at Naughty Dog is that we don't have to. It's always like, 'we would love another Last of Us, but if you guys feel you're passionate about something else, we'll support this other thing.' Very privileged position to be in, I never take that for granted. I've been just thinking about it, 'is there a concept there?' And for now years, I haven't been able to find that concept. But recently, that's changed, and I don't have a story, but I do have that concept that to me is as exciting as 1, as exciting as 2, is its own thing, and yet has this throughline for all three. So it does feel like there's probably one more chapter to this story."