The Last of Us Showrunner Explains That Controversial Change Fans Can’t Stop Talking About

The Last of Us is just a couple of months away from its return to small screens with a second season, but the show doesn’t even need to release its new episodes to get into new controversies.

Some fans of the original video game have been long slamming the adaptation for being unfaithful to the canon established there, being especially tough with Bella Ramsay who in The Last of Us portrays Ellie.

Things changed a bit with the show’s latest update, and many forgot about Ellie for a while, now turning to a new character whose first appearance will be marked in the upcoming instalment.

However, it seems like The Last of Us’ creators are pretty aware of all the talks that are going around, and they already have an answer for those who are taking it all way too seriously.

The Last of Us’ Season 2 New Images Confirm Abby’s Miscast

The next instalment’s premiere is set to take place sometime in April, but HBO doesn’t waste any time and has already started teasing the audience with the upcoming season’s new set of images which might have confirmed fans’ biggest fears.

Apart from Pedro Pascal ’s Joel and Bella Ramsay’s Ellie, the photos also feature Kaitlyn Dever’s Abby who will take on a key role in the second instalment. Just like many fans expected, the series’ version of Abby doesn’t look that similar to the video game’s character, mostly due to the lack of, well, big muscles.

Fans started speculating about the matter long before, around the time when HBO announced Dever’s cast back in 2024; now that the new pictures are a clear confirmation of Abby’s different look in the series, the controversy keeps fueling up.

On a Reddit thread, many got involved in a heated discussion, with a Redditor phantom_fonte highlighting that “there’s more to it than body-type. Abby’s been priming herself for years for revenge, which in my reading meant physical training as well”.

“She certainly doesn't NEED to be a brick shithouse but I enjoyed how much of a beast she was. She's seen by Ellie as this monster of incredible violence and her being massive as shit helped sell that”, another user, nicknamed sewious, replied.

They then also stated that in the original game Abby’s physical abilities are kind of equal to the ones Joel once had when he was younger, summing it all up by saying “Way I see it, the character is fundamentally altered for not being built in this way”.

The Last of Us Creator Has Another Take on the Issue

Despite fans being reassured that the adaptation should’ve stuck to the game’s canon, it seems like The Last of Us’ creator had different priorities on his mind.

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly ahead of the second season’s release, Neil Druckmann revealed that the team had been considering the actress’ ability for dramatic performance rather than her physical look.

He then delved into the matter, saying that they “would've struggled to find someone as good as Kaitlyn to play this role” since Ellie and Abby are completely different characters and thus should look accordingly; luckily, Ramsay and Dever are also nothing alike.

“That doesn't play as big of a role in this version of the story because there's not as much violent action moment to moment. It's more about the drama. I'm not saying there's no action here. It's just, again, different priorities and how you approach it”, Druckmann concluded, talking about the issue that fans have been raging about for months now.

The Last of Us’ season 2 will premiere in April, HBO is yet to announce the exact date.