The Last of Us Season 2 Cast Adds Six Names Ahead of April Premiere

HBO’s The Last of Us Season 2 is filling out its cast list with six more names ahead of its premiere this April.

Details on how the live-action adaptation will expand on the source material were revealed by Variety today. The full list of actors coming to the show includes Joe Pantoliano (Memento, The Matrix), Alanna Ubach (Euphoria, Bombshell), Ben Ahlers (The Gilded Age, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina), Hettienne Park (Don’t Look Up), Robert John Burke (RoboCop 3), and Noah Lamanna (Star Trek: Strange New Worlds).

The last-minute additions to the show’s upcoming retelling of The Last of Us Part II reveal the names that will play both characters included in the original games and new faces, too. Newcomer Pantoliano, for example, is set to play Eugene. You’d be forgiven for forgetting that Eugene already exists in The Last of Us universe as Ellie and Dina’s pot-smoking friend. He originally only exists as little more than a moment in the lengthy single-player sequel, but in The Last of Us Season 2, the character will get a bit more screen time.

Showrunners Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann explained to Variety that, in a way that is similar to what gaming fans saw with Bill in Season 1, audiences can expect Eugene’s background to be expanded upon in Season 2.

“I get excited when I see these opportunities,” Druckmann 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.”

Burke, meanwhile, has been tapped to play The Last of Us Part II bar owner and bigot sandwich-giver, Seth. Lamanna rounds out the cast of familiar faces as Kat, who is said to have dated Ellie before The Last of Us Part II’s story begins. Meanwhile, Ubach, Ahlers, and Park have been picked to play new characters named Hanrahan, Burton, Elise Park, respectively.

The group of fresh faces joins the already stacked cast for The Last of Us Season 2, including Pedro Pascal as Joel, Bella Ramsey as Ellie, Isabela Merced as Dina, Kaitlyn Dever as Abby, and Gabriel Luna as Tommy. The showrunners had previously suggested that the events of Part II would be told throughout multiple seasons, so expect more surprises to be revealed when as episodes roll out.

The Last of Us Season 2 brings the events of The Last of Us Part II into the live-action universe April 13. For more on HBO’s follow-up season, you can read up on why it sounds like the show is primed to tell its story over the course of four seasons. You can also check out more from Druckmann, who says Season 2 will feature some “pretty brutal” cut content from the original sequel video game.

Michael Cripe is a freelance contributor with IGN. He's best known for his work at sites like The Pitch, The Escapist, and OnlySP. Be sure to give him a follow on Bluesky (@mikecripe.bsky.social) and Twitter (@MikeCripe).