The next two seasons of The Last of Us will adapt the second game, The Last of Us Part 2. However, we shouldn't expect to see this story retold verbatim, as game director Neil Druckmann and showrunner Craig Mazin confirm that some aspects of the narrative could be "radically different" from the source material.
This comes after The Last of Us Part 2 made some controversial and unexpected narrative decisions (spoilers below), but also after the first season of the HBO adaptation made some popular departures from the games. So while the basic set-up of the second season is expected to be the same, it's possible that we'll see new and expanded character moments, and maybe even some changes to the story as a whole.
In an interview with IGN, shared just after the season one finale, Druckmann and Mazin gave us an idea as to what we can expect from the second season.
"[Season 2] will be different just as this season was different," says Mazin, discussing how faithful the show will be to the games going forward. "Sometimes it will be different radically, and sometimes it [won't] be fairly different at all, but it's going to be different."
He goes on to say that he and Druckmann are adamant that the show should be its "own thing", not constrained by what the games set up.
So, what will this mean in practice? Of course, the biggest point of contention that the loudest fans had with the sequel was Joel's brutal and unexpected demise at the hands of a new character, Abby. This isn't likely to change much at all, considering that it's the driving force behind the story as a whole. And even if many don't realise it just yet, Joel inadvertently set his fate in motion in the finale last night. If you know, you know.
Instead, we can most likely expect to explore some characters in more depth than the game allowed, just as season one did with Bill and Frank. Either that, or the fate of some side characters could change - probably not for the better too, knowing what this series is like.
In any case, season two could start filming this year. It won't tell the entire story of The Last of Us Part 2, with the game's narative expected to be split over two seasons.