Naughty Dog CEO Neil Druckmann believes there is a third installment in The Last of Us franchise. The man indicated in a documentary that he has developed a concept for a potential third chapter. It is not clear if and when that third part will be released.
Druckmann made the statement in a documentary in which the development process of The Last of Us Part II is examined. The man said that both the first and second parts of The Last of Us had a clear concept and that he has now also come up with a concept for a third part. “The first part focused on the unconditional love of a parent towards a child. In the second part the concept was: striving for justice for our loved ones at all costs,” it said.
Druckmann said he had been thinking about a concept for a third part for years and said he could not find it. “That has changed recently,” says the man. “I don’t have a story yet, but I do have a new concept,” he said. “I think this concept is at least as exciting as the first and second parts. So it feels like there is another chapter in the story.” He gave no further details after that.
The documentary also confirms the existence of deleted The Last of Us Part II DLC. Druckmann is said to have written a story that takes place immediately after The Last of Us Part II, with Tommy as the main character. However, according to Druckmann, this story was not a full-fledged game. Naughty Dog was also unable to continue its development because the development studio had to resolve other internal issues first. Druckmann hopes that the story will still see the light of day and remains unclear whether that will be through a game or a television show.
The Last of Us Part I and The Last of Us Part II are survival horror games from Naughty Dog. The first part was released in 2013 for PlayStation 3, followed by The Last of Us Remastered for PlayStation 4. In 2022, the first part was also released for PlayStation 5 and in 2023 The Last of Us Part I was also released for PC. Naughty Dog released The Last of Us Part II in 2020. This game was released for PlayStation 4 and has also been available for PlayStation 5 since early 2024. In 2023, HBO released the first season of The Last of Us series. Production and filming of the second season would have started early this year.