John Goodman, Ian Alexander (“Star Trek: Discovery”) and Laura Bailey (“The Legend of Vox Machina”) have all joined the cast of the currently in-production third and final season of HBO’s series adaptation of “The Last of Us” games.
The news was announced today by the network, timed with September 26th, the day on which the cordyceps outbreak kicks off the events of both the games and the TV series.
Goodman and Alexander play Joey and Paco, a ‘friendly duo’ who call themselves the “Heroes of the Highway”. Both are original creations for the TV series and do not appear in either of the two games.
Bailey will play Elizabeth, one of the leaders of the Seraphites – a religious sect that plays a key part in both the second and especially this third season.
Both Alexander and Bailey’s hiring is interesting, as both played the co-leading roles of Abby & Lev in the second half of “The Last of Us Part II” game – the main source material for the new season. Bailey famously received death threats from irate gamers about her character’s actions.
The trio join other new additions for the third season, like Jason Ritter, Patrick Wilson, Clea DuVall and Jorge Lendeborg Jr. alongside returnees Kaitlyn Dever, Isabela Merced, Gabriel Luna, Jeffrey Wright, Ariella Barer, Tati Gabrielle, Spencer Lord and Bella Ramsey.
Production is continuing through to November. Craig Mazin is the sole showrunner for the coming season, which is expected to premiere on HBO in the back half of next year.
Source: THR
