Adam Soukup July 2nd, 2025 - 2:53 PM
Neil Druckmann (Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, Jak and Daxter: The Lost Frontier) will abdicate his role as a writer/director for season three of HBO’s The Last of Us, according to a report by Deadline earlier this morning. The Naughty Dog Studio head released a statement on the company’s official Instagram account. View it below.
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“I’ve made the difficult decision to step away from my creative involvement in The Last of Us on HBO,” Druckmann writes. “With work completed on season 2 and before any meaningful work starts on season 3, now is the right time for me to transition my complete focus to Naughty Dog and its future projects, including writing and directing our exciting next game, Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, along with my responsibilities as Studio Head and Head of Creative.”
Though he began his career working on the Sony-owned developer’s other flagship franchise, the treasure-hunting Uncharted series, Druckmann is undoubtedly best known for his role as a writer and creative director for the original The Last of Us video game, along with its sequel, The Last of Us: Part II. He has since assumed the role of Naughty Dog’s studio head and is leading the charge on Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, which will constitute the studio’s first game not based on a pre-existing intellectual property in over twelve years.
Druckmann was also heavily involved with seasons one and two of HBO’s critically acclaimed adaptation of The Last of Us, writing five episodes and directing two in tandem with fellow showrunner Craig Mazin (Chernobyl, Identity Thief). Whether he will continue to perform his role as an executive producer for the series is unknown.
“Co-creating the show has been a career highlight,” Druckmann’s statement finishes. “It’s been an honor to work alongside Craig Mazin to executive produce, direct and write on the last two seasons. I’m deeply thankful for the thoughtful approach and dedication the talented cast and crew took to adapting The Last of Us Part I and the continued adaptation of The Last of Us Part II.”
Season three of The Last of Us is currently in development, while seasons one and two are available for streaming on HBO Max.
