‘The Last of Us’ Season 2: A who’s who of all the new characters

(CNN) — The long-awaited second season of “The Last of Us” is on the horizon, and with the HBO show’s sophomore outing comes a handful of new characters.

Season 2 picks up five years after the events of Season 1, which debuted in 2023, with Joel (Pedro Pascal) and Ellie (Bella Ramsey) living in the wintery town of Jackson after a chaotic and dangerous cross-country trek.

In the video game “The Last of Us Part II” – from which this season is adapted – there’s a lot of talk about Jackson being under threat but, executive producer and creator Neil Druckmann told CNN in an interview in March, you don’t see it in the game. On the show, however, Druckmann said they took the opportunity to show that side of the story and what it would be like “if a whole horde (of zombies) penetrated the walls of Jackson and got inside.”

“We get to show what’s at stake here in this world for this community,” he teased.

Many of the new characters this season reside in Jackson and will deal with that threat and, with the five-year time jump, Joel and Ellie have developed a new dynamic with each other and with others in the community. A look at some of those others follows.

Abby (Kaitlyn Dever)

Kaitlyn Dever’s journey with “The Last of Us” franchise began a decade ago, when she was initially approached by Druckmann to play Ellie in a film based on the game. The film never ended up happening, but Druckmann reached out to Dever to play Abby in Season 2 and, of course, she was in.

During a press conference in March, Dever said landing the role of Abby “felt surreal.” She added that it felt like “things that are meant to be in your life will happen if they’re supposed to. And it just felt right, Abby felt right.”

The character of Abby is the antagonist in Season 2. She is on a mission to avenge a loved one and has a whole crew of folks behind her to help her along the way.

Gail (Catherine O’Hara)

“Schitt’s Creek” star Catherine O’Hara is stepping into a more dramatic role on Season 2 of “The Last of Us,” playing Joel’s therapist Gail in Jackson. The role is original to the series, as the character is not featured in the video game.

Expanding the character of Joel in this respect was important to Druckmann, who told IGN in an interview in March that they created Gail for the show to help Joel “figure out why Ellie is icing him out.”

“He’s quite a bit in denial about the real reason (for) what’s happening there,” Druckmann said.

Isaac (Jeffrey Wright)

Jeffrey Wright is no stranger to post-apocalyptic settings, having previously starred in “Westworld” and “The Hunger Games.” He is also familiar with “The Last of Us” video game, for which he voiced the character of Isaac – a role he is reprising on screen. Isaac is the quietly powerful leader of a large militia group.

“We might get a sense of how he came to be, who he is. We might take a couple of steps backward before we reintroduce the character as we first see him in the game,” Wright told Collider in an interview in December. “However we introduce this character, you can be pretty certain it’s going to be messy.”

Dina (Isabela Merced)

Isabela Merced joins the cast as Dina, Ellie’s free-spirited best friend in Jackson who turns into a love interest. According to HBO, Dina’s devotion to Ellie “will be tested by the brutality of the world they inhabit” as the season goes on.

“I kind of see Dina as an extension of myself. If I were in an apocalyptic situation, I would try to lighten it up a bit,” Merced said during a press conference last month. “And I think Dina is sort of also Ellie’s compass and light, in a way.”

Jesse (Young Mazino)

Young Mazino, who previously starred in the Netflix drama “Beef,” appears in “The Last of Us” as Jesse, a pillar of his community in Jackson. A lot of Jesse’s character building stems from his relationships with Dina and Ellie, Mazino said at the “Last of Us” press conference.

“What he cares about all gets put to the test because of his relationship to Ellie and Dina and his obligation to the community that looked out for him when he needed somewhere to stay,” he said.

Kat (Noah Lamanna)

Newcomer Noah Lamanna appears in Season 2 as Ellie’s ex-girlfriend Kat. The pair live in the same town of Jackson where their paths tend to cross. “It’s very small, the vibe is off a little bit but we’re working through it,” Lamanna told CNN in an interview in March. “We’re on patrol together, we’re moving forward.”

Manny (Danny Ramirez)

Actor Danny Ramirez comes aboard in Season 2 as Manny, one of Isaac’s loyal soldiers who joins Abby on her mission. Manny is a character who was featured in “Part II” of the video game. In addition to “The Last of Us,” Ramirez is part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and was included in the massive cast announcement for “Avengers: Doomsday” last month as the Falcon.

“The Last of Us” airs Sundays at 9 p.m. EDT on HBO, with the episode available to stream on Max. HBO and Max, like CNN, are owned by the same parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery.

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