"Definitely planned for 2027": The Last of Us Season 3 release gets promising update from HBO Max

HBO Max's CEO has finally confirmed the release window for The Last of Us Season 3, which is 2027. The post-apocalyptic drama series, which is created by Craig Mazin and adapted from the video game of the same name by Naughty Dog, debuted with Season 1 in 2023.

Following the success, Season 2 debuted in 2025 and adapted the first half of The Last of Us Part II. The upcoming season will adapt the second half of the video game and will follow Abby's story.

Recently, co-showrunner Neil Druckmann announced that he will be stepping away from the adaptation to focus on more projects for Naughty Dog, which could lead to a creative shift in the upcoming season.

Confirming the 2027 release window for The Last of Us Season 3, HBO and Max content chairman/CEO Casey Bloys said in a statement with Variety:

''The series is definitely planned for 2027. Craig is still working it out whether it will be two more seasons or one more long season. It hasn’t been decided yet, and I’m following Craig’s lead on that.''

More on The Last of Us Season 3 in our story.

The Last of Us Season 3 finally gets a release window

Since the Season 2 finale in April 2025, fans have been anticipating an update on The Last of Us Season 3 and Bloys' statement puts some perspective on the future of this adaptation.

While Seasons 1 and 2 also featured a two-year hiatus between them, it was partly because of the Writers Guild of America strike. Since the scripts were not ready on time, Season 2 was delayed, making it a 2-year wait for the fans.

However, as confirmed from Bloys' comments, The Last of Us Season 3 will also return after a two-year hiatus. Moreover, off-screen creative decisions of Druckmann stepping away and Mazin still being unsure about the number of seasons, the wait for Season 3 could be even longer than the past season.

In addition to these behind-the-scenes creative changes, Season 3 is gradually advancing to a more intense story, action and difficult sequences that will likely take more time filming.

With Season 3 set to adapt Abby's point of view from the video game, it looks like fans would be in for a long wait before they can catch the next season.

The Last of Us Season 3 will adapt Abby's story from the video games

Kaitlyn Dever's Abby made a powerful debut in Season 2, which led to the most brutal and tragic death on television yet. Abby finally avenged her father's murder by killing Joel, setting up a cycle of revenge for Ellie to follow.

Both Ellie and Dina left for Seattle to find and kill Abby, where the former successfully killed many of Abby's group members, including Owen, Jesse and Mel. While Season 2 ended with questioning Ellie's morality for killing people over her vendetta, The Last of Us Season 3 will adapt Abby's story from the video games.

The fans will get to see her side of the story and Season 3 will also answer some much-needed questions, as Mazin teased with Variety:

“Those questions are correct and will be answered...How did that war start? Why? How did the Seraphites start? Who is [their] prophet? What happened to her? What does Isaac want? What’s happening at the end of Episode 7? What is this explosion? All of it will become clear.''

While Ellie will take a backseat in the upcoming season, Mazin teased Pedro Pascal's return in more flashbacks, featuring his life with Tommy and his family before the pandemic. The Last of Us Season 3 will surely feature a shift from the previous seasons as the show will no longer follow Joel and Ellie's journey, but it would be interesting to see a new perspective in the adaptation.

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