The Last of Us: Season 2 is still more than a year away from hitting screens, but we are already champing at the bit for every morsel of information about new developments in the series. Luckily, with several stars already confirmed, and a story map provided by Part II of the video game, we’ve already been offered plenty of useful info on showrunner Craig Mazin’s forthcoming season of the zombie apocalypse series on Max.

Season 1 of the series provided plenty of edge-of-your-seat action, and left the story on an upbeat note, as Joel (Pedro Pascal) made the fateful decision of rescuing Ellie (Bella Ramsey) from a deadly surgery. That saved the young girl’s life — but may have cost the world a chance at curing the Cordyceps outbreak. Part II of the video game suggests that the decision may come back to haunt Joel, but Mazin has maintained the creative license to allow the show to deviate from the game. How much he uses that license will likely be answered early in Season 2.

When Will Season Two Begin Filming?

After the conclusion of the SAG-AFTRA strike, the series is slowly gaining development traction again, but Max has yet to disclose exact dates for shooting — beyond saying it will be in January 2024. That could change, as Pedro Pascal has signed onto Marvel’s Fantastic Four, which will also shoot next year. Naturally, Mandalorian fans are up in arms about potentially losing Pascal to another project, but it appears he’ll still be able to wedge his work on The Last of Us into a very busy year ahead.

Why Pascal’s Fantastic Four Casting Likely Won’t Affect Season 2

Pascal is slated to play Reed Richards in Fantastic Four, which will begin filming in 2024. That won’t be an issue, however, if the Joel character in The Last of Us tracks with Part II of the video game — which would suggest he won’t need much shooting time.

How Close to Part II of the Video Game Will This Season Be?

Despite working closely with Neil Druckman, who created and directed the video game, Craig Mazin appears to have the autonomy to change the story as it best suits the series. Still, The Last of Us is known for being much closer to the video game than other game-to-screen adaptations. Mazin has maintained that he plans to hit all the key plot points of the video game, so expect many of the same characters from Part II to appear on the show.

Where Will Season 2 Take Place?

Bella Ramsey will be back with Pedro Pascal in Vancouver according to Deadline, where a majority of the second season will be filmed. Like the first season, which was filmed entirely in Canada, the remainder of the story will likely stay within the Pacific Northwest. It’s not a big cheat, as the story and locations are in essentially the same region, though Canada’s tax incentives will keep the crew north of the border.

Where Does Part II of the Video Game Suggest Joel and Ellie Will Travel?

Much of Part II of the video game takes place in Seattle, for which Vancouver can be easily mimicked. In Washington, new militias will arise, and Joel’s brother Tommy will travel there to seek revenge against Abby — with Ellie in tow.

Who are The Rattlers?

The Fireflies became Joel and Ellie’s greatest adversary in Season 1, besides the zombie-like clickers themselves. As the series introduces the Abby character and Ellie will again venture out of Wyoming, a new foe, the Rattlers, will become an opposing force.

When will Ellie Encounter the Rattlers?

At some point during season 2, Abby and Lev will travel to Santa Barbara in search of remaining Fireflies. Turns out that’s Rattler territory, and when Ellie pursues Abby down South, she quickly realizes that the group are using stray survivors as slaves, and have put a stranglehold on the region.

When Will Season Two Premiere?

No official release date has been set, but signs are pointing to Spring of 2025. With the strike out of the way, and a tentative January 2024 start to the show’s shooting schedule, Max will likely stay on track and have Season 2 ready by the end of next year. As Max’s most anticipated season premier, they won’t want to keep audiences waiting too long.

Which Cast Members Are Returning?

Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey are already confirmed, but details are murky about the rest of Season 2’s cast. We know that Joel’s brother Tommy, played by Gabriel Luna, will have a much bigger presence in the second season, but otherwise there will be a largely different cast. Key characters from Part II of the game like Abby and Dina will bolster the story with new subplots that veer away from Joel and Ellie’s past.

Is Bella Ramsey Age Appropriate for Ellie in Season 2?

At the time of Season 1, Bella Ramsey was a 17-year-old playing a 14-year-old character. The second season is set 5 years later, making the now 20-year-old Ramsey right around the same age as her character. Ramsey has always had a poise beyond her years, since her stirring portrayal of Lyanna Mormont on Game of Thrones, so playing an adult role shouldn’t be too big of a reach.

Who Will Play Abby?

While Craig Mazin has confirmed that the Abby character has already been cast, rumors that Kaitlyn Dever will play the role remain just that — rumors. It was originally reported by Forbes that the final decision of casting Abby had come down to two actors, with the most solid rumors pointing towards Dever and Australian actress Shannon Berry. Both bear a striking resemblance to the video game Abby, but the fact that Mazin follows Dever on Instagram has many an internet sleuth assuming that she has indeed secured the role.

Why the Abby Character Will Be So Integral in Season 2

In Part II of the video game, Abby is rescued from a horde of infected by Joel and his younger brother Tommy while still in Jackson, Wyoming. Turns out, Abby’s father was the Firefly surgeon whom Joel kills in Part I. In the game, Abby gets her revenge and absconds to Seattle. Eventually, Tommy, Ellie, and her girlfriend Dina travel to Seattle to find Abby, where two warring factions, the Washington Liberation Front and the Seraphites battle for control of the city.

Which Characters Might Get Killed-Off in Season Two?

We mentioned Mazin’s willingness to deviate from the video game’s storyline when it benefits the series, something he did on several occasions in the first season. Still, the show is remarkably similar to the game, which in its second installment kills off a very beloved character whose name rhymes with coal — sending fans reeling. Speaking with Josh Horowitz on an episode of the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Mazin wouldn’t make a firm declaration either way, saying “[A]nytime you’re adapting something where there’s source material, there’s certainly an expectation that the adaptation will hit the main source material points and that is mostly what happens.”

Why We Don’t Expect Pedro Pascal’s Character to Survive Season 2

Mazin has shown no remorse about killing-off key characters, no matter how much the show’s fans grow attached to them. In Season 1, he did just that with Tess (Anna Torv), who gives a fungal French kiss to a clicker before blowing up herself and the swarming army of mushroom zombies to save Joel and Ellie. We can only hope that, if Mazin does adhere to the video game’s story, he stretches out the timeline enough to maximize Pascal’s role in Season 2, as Joel is killed in the opening minutes of the video game’s second installment.

Are the Showrunners Planning a Third Season?

If the show continues to perform well, all signs are pointing to the creation of a third season. Mazin confirmed as much, telling Deadline “There’s more story, so this show will not end with Season 2 unless people don’t watch it, and we’ll get canceled.” While the video game has yet to debut a Part 3, creator Neil Druckmann is still planning to make it a priority for his Naughty Dog game studio. Druckmann will want to get the game out ASAP, telling BuzzFeed “I think there’s more story to tell,” while also promising not to run into a Game of Thrones issue (where the television show outpaces the source material).

Max has proven its willingness to wait many years, if necessary, to continue a series. Even the famously-truncated David Simon series The Wire completed 5 seasons on HBO. This is all very promising news for fans of The Last of Us, who should expect a third season at the very least.