Don’t Bet on ‘The Last of Us Part 3’ Happening Anytime Soon, But Expansion of Eugene’s Story is Possible, says Neil Druckmann

If you’re eagerly awaiting more from the Last of Us series, you might want to brace yourself. Neil Druckmann has hinted that The Last of Us Part 3 might not ever become a reality. But before you get too disappointed, there’s a silver lining: he’s really enthusiastic about the second season of the TLOU TV show, which promises to dive deeper into a couple of characters from The Last of Us Part 2 that were only briefly mentioned in the game.

In a chat with Variety, Druckmann was questioned about the likelihood of a third installment in the series. This comes after the studio decided in 2023 to pull the plug on an online Last of Us game they were working on, aiming instead to concentrate on creating “single player narrative games.” This shift in focus might have opened the door for another Last of Us game, but Druckmann isn’t sold on the idea just yet. “I guess the only thing I would say is don’t bet on there being more of [The] Last of Us,” he noted, “This could be it.”

It’s a bit of a bummer; we might never see moments akin to the touching giraffe scene from the first game, or anything that mirrors the impact of The Godfather. However, Druckmann’s excitement is still very much alive for the Last of Us universe, particularly with the HBO series’ second season. The new season plans to give more screen time and development to two characters that were merely mentioned in the game: Eugene and Kat. Joe Pantoliano, known for The Matrix, will take on the role of Eugene, while Noah Lamanna from Star Trek: Strange New Worlds portrays Kat.

Eugene is a patrolman in Jackson whose stash of weed Ellie and Dina find. On the other hand, Kat, known as Cat in game lingo, is Ellie’s former girlfriend and the artist behind her tattoo. Druckmann is thrilled about this expansion, especially for Eugene. “I get excited when I see these opportunities,” he said. “I’m like, ‘Oh, I don’t know Eugene that well!’ The story we told [in the game] was somewhat superficial. The way this character comes in really gets to the heart of Joel and Ellie and their relationship.” This is probably the most attention a character named Eugene has ever received.

So, even if a new game isn’t on the horizon, you can still look forward to the ongoing journey of The Last of Us TV show, which looks like it might run for four seasons. It’s certainly not all doom and gloom for fans of the series.