The Last Of Us co-creator Neil Druckmann has spoken about the “road ahead” for the franchise, with many fans convinced Part 3 is happening.
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The Last Of Us was released in 2013 with sequel The Last Of Us Part 2 following in 2020. A spin-off multiplayer game was announced in 2022 but was scrapped the following year so Naughty Dog could focus on their new IP Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet instead.
During a 2024 making-of documentary for The Last Of Us, Druckmann revealed that he finally had “concept” for a third game after years of struggling to come up with an exciting idea. “It does feel like there’s probably one more chapter to this story,” he explained. However last year, he suggested that the HBO adaptation could be “it” for the franchise but later admitted he would “totally jump” at making The Last Of Us Part Three if the story was strong enough. “It’s important to me that everything is high quality. I don’t just want to make a lot of it, I want to be very thoughtful about everything we make.” In September, Druckmann teased “more” updates when “the time is right”.
In a new Instagram post, Druckmann shared early concept art of The Last Of Us’ Ellie and Joel. “Cleaning out the garage today and stumbled on my original sketches from 2003 for a game pitch about a man, his surrogate daughter, and a trek across a broken America,” he wrote. “Been a wild journey. Grateful for every part of it, especially the few stops that remain on the road ahead.”
“That last line pretty much confirms Part Three,” replied one fan, with more than 1420 people liking the comment. “Bro just say Part Three is confirmed please,” said another.
“Could also be wishful thinking, and that he is referencing the last season of the tv-show,” wrote one Reddit user. “Oooooorrrrrrr he’s grateful for his own personal journey and is implying he’s got a few more games left in him before he retires,” added another.
Druckmann stepped down from HBO’s The Last Of Us TV show after the second season aired, alongside fellow Naughty Dog writer Halley Gross. “Now is the right time for me to transition my complete focus to Naughty Dog and its future projects, including writing and directing our exciting next game, Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, along with my responsibilities as Studio Head and Head of Creative,” Druckmann said in a statement.
Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet doesn’t currently have a release date though it’s expected to launch at some point next year.
Meanwhile the third season of The Last Of Us is also due to air next year and, according to HBO bosses, could wrap up the story.
In other news, filming on the new Tomb Raider TV series has been delayed due to star Sophie Turner sustaining an injury.
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