HBO's The Last Of Us Might Only Be Two Seasons
Things could be over before they've even begun, as a cryptic update on HBO's live-action The Last of Us series suggests it might not be the sprawling saga we'd hope for.
Adapting Naughty Dog's two-game saga was never going to be an easy task, but with The Last of Us season one only being nine episodes long, we're pretty sure there's at least a second season on the way. Unfortunately... that could be it.
Will The Last Of Us End After Season 2?
Click to enlargeThere's a lot riding on season one of The Last of Us, but with a massive budget, two Game of Thrones legends in the leading roles, and Chernobyl's Craig Mazin at the helm, things are looking promising.
Sparing some sort of disaster (we're looking at Netflix's short-lived Resident Evil), we can't see how The Last of Us won't be renewed for the second season. The problem is, it could soon be running out of source material.
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Mazin and Game Director Neil Druckmann explained their grand plans for The Last of Us series and how it won't extend beyond Naughty Dog's games of the same name.
Citing the problems that David Benioff and D.B. Weiss had when Game of Thrones overtook George R.R. Martin's books, Druckmann explained, "We have no plans to tell any stories beyond adapting the games."
In fact, he promised, "We won't run into the same issue as Game of Thrones since Part II doesn’t end on a cliffhanger." It's not confirmed that season two will jump into Part II, but it looks increasingly likely.
Where Is The Last Of Us Part 3?
Why this means we could be two and done is that Mazin added, "I don't have any interest in a spinning-plates-go-on-forever show." Although he doesn't say The Walking Dead, reporter James Hibberd nods toward the fatigue AMC's shuffling zombie series suffered across its 10-season run.
"When it becomes a perpetual motion machine," concluded Mazin. "It just can't help but get kind of … stupid. Endings mean everything to me."
At least there's a chance there could be a season three - just not for a very long time. In the same beat, Druckmann hinted at a mythical The Last of Us Part III and admitted, "I think there’s more story to tell."
These musings come after Druckmann steered us away from rumours Part 3 is the next game on Naughty Dog's docket. Still, if there's a third game, there could be more from the live-action series.
HBO has a troubled past with this kind of epic series. Chernobyl was perfectly told in one season, GRRM originally wanted Thrones to run for 10 seasons, and Westworld was recently cut short ahead of its final season.
Remembering how the Lost showrunners said they'd always mapped out a clear end for ABC's series, it looks like Mazin and Druckmann know exactly when they'll pull the plug on The Last of Us series. Here's hoping they spend a little longer telling the story.