Kaitlyn Dever

Another actor has been cast for the next season of The Last of Us. HBO’s adaptation of the Naughty Dog series has found its Jesse in Beef’s Young Mazino.

More than a few TV and film adaptations of video games have impressed in recent years, and in that group, few have scaled the sort of heights that HBO’s The Last of Us did last year. So successful was the show’s first season that shortly after its premiere, a second one was officially greenlit, and though reports have previously pegged it for a 2025 premiere, a specific release date has remained elusive.

HBO created a lot more The Last of Us fans with its super successful TV adaptation. The first season launched last year, finding a huge audience and critical acclaim, and the second series is now in production, heading to screens in 2025. Now, the company has provided our very first look at official shots from the anticipated new season:

Warner Bros. has released new pictures of season 2 of critically acclaimed show The Last of Us, showcasing Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey reprising their roles of Joel and Ellie respectively.

HBO has released the first official images from the second season of The Last of Us.

PlayStation Plus subscribers can prepare themselves for ' second season with the subscription's latest free trial. As well as offering a roster of several full games to download and stream from across several PlayStation consoles' libraries, the Premium tier of PlayStation Plus also grants access to 2-hour long timed trials of some newer AAA offerings, such as,, and more and players can carry over their progress — including trophies — to the main game if they choose to purchase it afterward.

Open Roads is an easy game to get lost in. It tells a twisting tale about generational trauma — the tension, lies and love between mother and daughter — with all the comfort and warmth of an early 2000s network drama like Gilmore Girls or Charmed. As a former suburban teen myself, this game left me feeling equally exposed and understood.

Xbox Game Pass Ultimate stands out for offering a vast library of games playable across Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, and PC at a monthly rate of $17. Subscribers benefit from monthly additions of new games, such as Dead Island 2, alongside perks like online multiplayer access and discounts on non-Game Pass titles. Recent additions to the service include NBA 2K24 and MLB The Show 24, with more anticipated titles like Diablo 4, marking the first Activision Blizzard addition to Game Pass. Check out the new games now available on Xbox Game Pass Ultimate.

Things haven't been easy for Fullbright, the company that most famously produced Gone Home back in 2013, a slice of indie narrative heaven that won plaudits. After the excellent (but less virally successful) Tacoma in 2017, it's now back with another long-awaited game, Open Roads — except, in fact, the name Fullbright has been scrubbed from the final product after allegations of a toxic workplace culture sprung up a few years ago. The game's instead credited to the 'Open Roads Team'. Delays and slow progress have seen it slip years from its original release window, but the game is here at last: a short and sweet story-driven road trip.

Xbox Game Pass has added three new games today, including one promising day-one release and Diablo 4. The latter is the first Activision Blizzard game to reach Xbox Game Pass since Microsoft acquired the company in late 2023.

There are times when Open Roads hits alarmingly close to home. Early on in this interactive road trip, your 16-year-old protagonist Tess turns around to reach for a bag perched in the back of her mom’s vintage station wagon – without skipping a beat, she’s accosted by her mother, Opal, from behind the wheel. The altercation flooded my brain with memories of family road trips in the early 2000s: “You can’t just turn around. It’s unsafe,” my dad would say from his vehicular throne, despite how frustratingly close I was to grabbing my Game Boy. Parental authority and nostalgia are just a few of the powerful tools Open Roads harnesses to deliver a playful and relatable story about coming of age in the early aughts, however, hastily resolved problems and the lack of an engaging mystery also make this adventure a little too predictable to leave a lasting impression.

Tom Holland's Spider-Man 4 is reportedly searching for a new director to replace the Homecoming trilogy's Jon Watts, and one of the rumored contenders comes from the Fast and Furious franchise.

The Last of Us' first season wrapped up in 2023, but another is already in production, adapting the second game. Interestingly, Pedro Pascal (Joel Miller) reportedly finished filming this week. If you know, you know.

HBO’s The Last of Us has added four new cast members for season two.

Four new cast members have been announced for The Last of Us Season 2.

has grown quite a bit this morning, as four more stars have signed on to the HBO television adaptation of the critically acclaimed video game series.

Filming on The Last of Us season 2 is currently underway, and series star Pedro Pascal has an update on how things are going.

will play Ellie’s love interest, Dina, in the upcoming second season of . The actress recently talked about the show, other projects, and her “unhealthy obsession with video games.”

One of the more heartbreaking revelations of Naughty Dog's recently released Grounded II: Making the Last of Us Part II documentary was the extent to which unwell The Last of Us fans took their grievances. The worst of it, according to Abby actor Laura Bailey, was «real hardcore death threats», some of which were even directed at Bailey's newborn child.

The Last Of Us Season 2 is set to begin filming over the next few days, and in preparation, the entire cast of the show and the show's production crew all recently met up in Canada. It seems as though to potentially celebrate the start of filming and to properly introduce the new faces playing characters such as Dina and Jesse, the crew went out to dinner, and took a lovely group picture to bookmark the occasion.

Four new directors are set to helm The Last of Us season 2 – and we're so excited.

No, sorry, there won't be a Bill and Frank TV spin-off for The Last of Us after all. Series co-creator Craig Mazin has said the crew is happy with what it accomplished with those characters in the first season, and as such «there won't be more Bill and Frank».

I own a jacket that’s eerily similar to Tess’ in Open Roads. It’s a blue bomber with yellow and burnt orange accents, and it’s not the only thing that Tess and I have in common. As she leisurely explores her childhood bedroom in the first few minutes of the game, Tess comes across set pieces that ground her environment in the early 2000s. There’s a chunky black television set and scattered DVD cases, little bottles of bright nail polish, a black-and-white strip from a photo booth, newspapers remembering 9/11 and hunting for bigfoot, and a bright pink tube of sickly sweet lip balm. These are the leftovers of her adolescence — the room is disheveled and largely empty, with most of her possessions packed away, ready to move. Tess picks through the room’s remaining photos and yearbooks, her hand-drawn fingers reaching out to interact with 3D objects, revealing more of her backstory with each touch. The cuff of her jacket is jarringly familiar every time it enters the frame.

In my bedroom, I have a drawer lovingly dubbed my «drawer of sentimentality.» There's a hat signed by various members of my favorite bands of a 2010s Warped Tour, tickets to some of my favorite movies, sticks from my last year on drum line in high school, and cards. Birthday cards, Christmas cards, «just because» cards, ones I got for graduating high school, ones I got for graduating college – So. Many. Cards. I struggle to throw cards away with personal greetings. I struggle to throw out anything that means something to me, even more than a decade later, so my sentimental stuff lives in a single drawer to keep me in check. 

The Last of Us showrunner Craig Mazin has confirmed that no Bill and Frank spin-off is on the way. Rumors of a prequel series featuring the beloved characters began circling when Nick Offerman made some interesting comments at the Creative Emmys.

A cursory search through YouTube shows hundreds, if not thousands of videos that tie all of The Last of Us’ cutscenes together so viewers can watch them like a movie. Count The Last of Us Season 2's Young Mazino as one of those viewers.

Following a solid albeit not outstanding 2023, adventure games fans can look forward to the release of several long-anticipated titles throughout 2024. As usual for this genre, the selected titles offer a unique mix of intrigue and serenity (sometimes seamlessly intertwined) that you are unlikely to find elsewhere.

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Actor Troy Baker knew from the beginning that The Last of Us 2 was bound to be a highly controversial game.

The Last of Us season 2 cast added Isabela Merced as Ellie's love interest Dina, and viewers can already get a glimpse at the onscreen pair through a fan's artistic vision.

The recent flurry of casting announcements for major characters in season 2 of HBO’s The Last of Us are continuing. Following announcements of Kaitlyn Dever being cast as Abby and Young Mazino being cast as Jesse, HBO has now announced that The Last of Us has also found its Dina in Isabela Merced.

The Last of Us season 2 news has been flooding in over the past few days, with Dina being the latest character cast. We now know the pivotal character will be played by Madame Web star Isabela Merced in the HBO show, and her co-star Bella Ramsey had a touching reaction to the news.

Another lead in The Last of Us Part II has been cast for its TV adaptation. The second season of HBO’s The Last of Us has found its Dina in Instant Family’s Isabela Merced.

Actress Isabela Merced will play Dina in The Last of Us Season 2.

Production on season 2 of HBO’s The Last of Us is beginning to ramp up, which means we’re also starting to get official casting announcements for key characters that will be introduced when the season premiers in 2025. Recently, it was announced that Kaitlyn Dever had been cast as Abby, and now, another important role has been filled.

Beef star Young Mazino is set to play Jesse in The Last of Us season 2.

Naughty Dog and HBO have cast Young Mazino as Jesse for The Last of Us' second season. This follows yesterday's news that Kaitlyn Dever (Booksmart, No One Will Save You) will play Abby in the show's second season. 

There are quite a few fans out there who are eager to dive into the next season of The Last of Us. With Naughty Dog delivering such a compelling storyline with the game series, it was likely quite an easy adaptation to deliver on HBO. As a result, fans have taken up with the show without ever playing through the games. Fortunately, because of how popular it became initially, HBO was prompted to go through a renewal for a second season during the airing of the first season. Recently, we got word of who will step into Abby’s role. Now, we are learning who will step up to take on the role of Jesse. 

Young Mazino has joined the cast for the second season of HBO's The Last of Us adaptation.

Abby Anderson is one of the most divisive and definitely interesting characters in the The Last Of Us mythos. Naughty Dog has seen it fit to make players both see her kill characters you love, and then make you play as her. And now, we know who will be playing her on-screen on HBO.

HBO has cast Kaitlyn Dever to take on the role of Abby for The Last of Us Season 2, as the story is set to continue. Kaitlyn will join prime pair Pedro Pascal as Joel and Bella Ramsey’s Ellie as they continue to navigate the world. Just as season one took story beats from the original The Last of Us, season two will likely take major story beats from The Last of Us Part Two.

The Last of Us season 2 has found its Abby in Kaitlyn Dever, confirming previous reports. In a tweet, HBO confirmed that the Booksmart star will be playing the second protagonist — some prefer seeing her as a villain — in the post-apocalyptic series, posing a new challenge to Ellie Williams (Bella Ramsey). Interestingly, Dever had a prior connection to the show when fans lobbied the studio to cast her as the 13-year-old Ellie, due to her facial resemblance to the in-game character and her involvement in the Uncharted 4 game — also from developer Naughty Dog. However, co-creator Neil Druckmann and the team opted for a younger actor in Ramsey, who in my opinion, nailed the role.

The voice actor who played Abby in The Last of Us 2 has responded to HBO's casting of the same character for the second season of the TV show, and she's just as excited as we all are.

HBO’s The Last of Us received widespread praise for its first season, with its immaculate casting being one of several things it drew praise for- following which, understandably enough, there’s been no shortage of curiosity around how the show will cast some of its most crucial characters for upcoming seasons. One character in particular that’s been at the center of most conversations is, of course, Abby, the deuteragonist of The Last of Us Part 2, and we now officially know who’ll be portraying her in the show’s upcoming second season, which is set to premier in 2025.

HBO has cast Kaitlyn Dever to take on the role of Abby for The Last of Us Season 2, as the story is set to continue. Kaitlyn will join prime pair Pedro Pascal as Joel and Bella Ramsey’s Ellie as they continue to navigate the world. Just as season one took story beats from the original The Last of Us, season two will likely take major story beats from The Last of Us Part Two.

HBO’s The Last of Us has found its Abby. Kaitlyn Dever, of Booksmart and Dopesick, will play the Part II lead in Season 2 of The Last of Us.

HBO's The Last of Us has finally unveiled its Abby and it's Kaitlyn Dever, the actor known for her roles in Booksmart, No One Will Save You, and that other Naughty Dog game you may have heard of, Uncharted 4.

HBO has cast the role of Abby for its second season of The Last of Us.

The Last of Us has found its Abby Anderson. Kaitlyn Dever will play Abby in the second season of the HBO show, joining fellow cast members Bella Ramsey and Pedro Pascal. Dever is best known for her roles in shows like Dopesick and Unbelievable, as well as films including Booksmart and Dear Evan Hansen.

Fans have been waiting for more information about this upcoming second season of The Last of Us. The video game was such a massive hit and a thrilling storyline that when HBO adapted the series, it was met with much of the same fanfare. Viewers couldn’t get enough of this incredible journey featuring Joel and Ellie. Because of this show’s popularity, HBO quickly ordered a second season as the first season aired. While fans enjoyed the show and watched the finale, those who played the game knew what was in store for the second season. 

Kaitlyn Dever has officially been cast as Abby in the second season of The Last of Us TV series.

Season 2 of HBO’s The Last of Us will star Kaitlyn Dever as Abby Anderson, the antagonist (and playable protagonist) of the video game The Last of Us Part 2, HBO and developer Naughty Dog announced Tuesday.

By Emma Roth, a news writer who covers the streaming wars, consumer tech, crypto, social media, and much more. Previously, she was a writer and editor at MUO.

HBO has announced that actress Kaitlyn Dever has joined The Last of Us Season 2 cast as Abby, who is Ellie’s rival in the second video game.

After rumors, speculation, and fan-casting – The Last of Us season 2 has officially cast Kaitlyn Dever as Abby.

Kaitlyn Dever has been officially announced as The Last of Us TV adaptation's Abby. Kaitlyn Dever is perhaps best known for her role in 2019's Booksmart, but video game fans may know her best as the voice of Cassie Drake, seen at the end of Uncharted 4: A Thief's End. Dever was also an early fan cast for the role of Ellie when casting rumors for The Last of Us TV show first began swirling. She also reportedly read for the role of Ellie before it ultimately went to Bella Ramsey.

It was back in 2020 when Fullbright announced Open Roads, a family road trip tale, that was expected to release in 2021. However, the game was delayed but Open Roads has now re-emerged with a new release date, with that date being February 22nd, 2024. A new trailer has also been released to confirm the date.

The Last of Us season 2 is officially coming out in 2025 – and we have two years to prepare for another emotionally devastating batch of episodes.

Open Roads, the narrative adventure game starring Keri Russell (The Americans, Star Wars Episode IX: Rise of Skywalker) and Kaitlyn Dever (Booksmart, Uncharted 4: A Thief's End), finally has a release date, nearly three years after its initial reveal at The Game Awards 2020. It hits consoles and PC on February 22, 2024. 

It was back in 2020 when Fullbright announced Open Roads, a family road trip tale, that was expected to release in 2021. However, the game was delayed but Open Roads has now re-emerged with a new release date, with that date being February 22nd, 2024. A new trailer has also been released to confirm the date.

Fallout: New Vegas Day last week was a hit, bringing a bunch of fans together to celebrate the whole series, but with a particular focus on Obsidian's spin-off. However, one dedicated fan repped the often-overlooked Fallout 2, turning up with the iconic car you can find to get around the wasteland.

A PlayStation 5 version of The Last of Us Part 2 has reportedly been added to the console's database.

Craig Mazin’s could have found its Abby in the form of Booksmart and No One Will Save You actor .

According to Los Angeles Magazine contributor Jeff Sneider, Kaitlyn Dever (Booksmart, Dear Evan Hansen, Last Man Standing) is in talks to play Abby in the second series of HBO's The Last of Us.

Kaitlyn Dever is reportedly in talks to star as Abby in the second season of The Last of Us.

The casting of Abby in the second season of The Last of Us TV series may be imminent, according to a report.

Like every other media production, The Last of Us’ second season on HBO was held up for several months by the writers and actors strikes in Hollywood, but with the strikes now having wrapped up, the show is preparing to move ahead for next steps.

Warning! Spoilers ahead!

Hulu’s original science fiction movie No One Will Save You is an effective, creepy, and at times repulsive thriller, but it’s also openly positioned as a discussion-starter. Isolated small-town loner Brynn (Booksmartstar ​​Kaitlyn Dever) encounters aliens, which she alternately fights and flees. Her situation keeps changing in ways that are sometimes hard to interpret, especially since there’s virtually no intelligible dialogue in the entire movie.

Stephen King is a big fan of No One Will Save You, the new sci-fi horror movie that just quietly dropped on Disney Plus in the UK and Hulu in the US. Starring Booksmart's Kaitlyn Dever, in a practically dialogue-free role, the film sees an isolated young woman tasked with surviving the night when her home comes under the attack of evil extraterrestrials.

Happy Friday, Polygon readers!

Welcome to the weekend. We've got your downtime viewing covered with a guide to all the latest streaming releases, from Deadites to Donatello (and Leonardo, Raphael, and Michaelangelo…). 

Home invasion films tap into an almost universal fear. From Fred Walton’s When a Stranger Calls to 2008’s The Strangers, the highs of the genre prey on the anxiety that bolted doors and locked windows can only do so much to protect you from violent terror. No One Will Save You, Hulu’s latest horror film premiere, thoroughly understands this, brilliantly springboarding off home invasion and extraterrestrial horror tropes to create a ride that’s both psychological and full of surprises. This is a scary movie.

Even with Dune: Part Two postponed to 2024, fall 2023 is full of major movie releases, from franchise projects like the Marvel Cinematic Universe installment The Marvels to a new Hunger Games movie, a new Godzilla movie, and the long-awaited Chicken Run sequel Dawn of the Nugget. But as usual, the biggest films of fall are largely tied to existing IP or familiar stories, whether it’s series installments (Saw X, The Nun II, new Equalizer and Expendables movies), biopics and other based-on-real-life movies (Priscilla, Ferrari, Napoleon), or book adaptations (The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, Poor Things, the film adaptation of the Broadway adaptation of Alice Walker’s The Color Purple). Film buffs frequently look at this kind of lineup and grouse, “Where are the original stories?”