The writer’s strike is having an effect on various productions, and now it has impacted another – HBO’s “The Last of Us”. Variety reports that preparations for casting for the second season were underway until earlier this week when it was all put on hold.
Prior to that, the casting team was already at work and asking actors to read scenes taken directly from “The Last of Us Part II” game upon which the second season will be based.
There are reportedly no scripts for the second season at this time, but the hope is to begin shooting the new run in early 2024 in Vancouver.
Series co-creator and showrunner Craig Mazin has been seen on the picket line with his fellow Writers Guild of America members in recent days and is not currently doing any work on the show – including being involved in casting.
Similarly, co-creator and co-showrunner Neil Druckmann, who also served as writer and creative director of the two “The Last of Us” games, is not currently working on the show’s second season in any capacity.
Mazin wrote the majority of the first season, Druckmann wrote the seventh “Left Behind” episode, and the pair co-wrote the series premiere and finale.
The series debuted in January on HBO to some of the year’s best reviews and, more importantly, strong ratings that steadily climbed each week to overtake “House of the Dragon” as HBO’s biggest show of the past decade.
The series averaged around 30 million cross-platform viewers per episode and was quickly renewed for a second season after just two episodes had aired. Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey are slated to return as Joel and Ellie.
