Ellie's Major The Last Of Us Season 3 Cast Change Teased By Bella Ramsey

Image via HBO Published Oct 12, 2026, 6:21 PM EDT Sign in to your ScreenRant account EXCLUSIVE: Bella Ramsey, who stars on HBO's hit post-apocalyptic series The Last of Us, just teased the major cast change that's coming up in the third season. The Last of Us, which adapts the popular video game, debuted on the cable network in 2023, with Ramsey playing Ellie and Pedro Pascal as Joel Miller. Right from the beginning, it was an immediate hit and garnered one of the highest ratings for an HBO show in years. Kaitlyn Dever joined the cast as Abby during the second season. HBO · Seasons 1 & 2 Knowledge Test Endure and Survive 🦠OutbreakDay zero 🛣JourneyCross country ☠️FactionsPick a side 👤CharactersWho are they? 🌇SeattleSeason 2 ENTER THE ZONE → 01 The pandemic in The Last of Us is caused by a real-world organism that has evolved to infect humans. What type of organism is it? AA mutated prion BA Cordyceps fungus CA parasitic bacterium DAn airborne retrovirus ✓ Correct! The Cordyceps brain infection (CBI) is based on the real Ophiocordyceps genus — a parasitic fungus that takes over the nervous systems of insects. In the show, rising global temperatures allowed a mutated strain to jump to humans. ✗ Not quite. The answer is a Cordyceps fungus. The show’s pandemic is based on real Ophiocordyceps fungi that zombify insects. A key detail: unlike the games, the HBO show spreads infection through contaminated flour rather than airborne spores. NEXT → 02 In the HBO series, what year does Outbreak Day occur — the night Joel’s life is shattered and civilization begins to collapse? A2013 B2019 C2003 D2010 ✓ Correct! The HBO show moved Outbreak Day to September 26, 2003 — ten years earlier than the game’s 2013 date. This puts the main story in 2023, aligning with the show’s premiere year. ✗ Not quite. The answer is 2003. While the original game set Outbreak Day in 2013, the show shifted it a decade earlier to September 26, 2003, placing the 20-year time jump right at the show’s real-world premiere. NEXT → 03 Joel’s daughter, whose death on Outbreak Day defines the rest of his story, shares a name with a biblical figure. What is her name? ASarah BAnna CRachel DGrace ✓ Correct! Sarah Miller is Joel’s 14-year-old daughter, played by Nico Parker in the show. Her death at the hands of a FEDRA soldier in the series premiere is the emotional foundation of Joel’s entire character arc. ✗ Not quite. The answer is Sarah. Joel’s daughter Sarah was shot by a FEDRA soldier during the chaos of Outbreak Day. Her loss is the wound that drives Joel’s overprotectiveness of Ellie twenty years later. NEXT → 04 Episode 3, “Long Long Time,” tells the love story of Bill and Frank over many years in their fortified town. How does their story ultimately end? ARaiders overrun their compound and kill them both BFrank is bitten and Bill stays to fight off infected CThey leave together to join Joel in Boston DThey share a final meal and die together by choice ✓ Correct! After Frank’s health declines from a degenerative disease, he asks Bill for one perfect last day. They cook a beautiful meal, get married, and Bill — unwilling to live without Frank — puts pills in both their glasses. They die peacefully, together. ✗ Not quite. The answer is they share a final meal and die together by choice. Frank, dying from illness, requests one last perfect day. Bill cooks their finest meal, and after exchanging vows, they both take pills — choosing to leave the world together on their own terms. NEXT → 05 Season 2 expands the world far beyond the Boston QZ. What major U.S. city serves as the primary setting for the season’s conflict? ASalt Lake City BSeattle CPortland DDenver ✓ Correct! Season 2’s main conflict plays out across a rain-soaked, overgrown Seattle, where two warring factions — the WLF and the Seraphites — have turned the city into a battleground. ✗ Not quite. The answer is Seattle. The Emerald City is the setting for Season 2’s central conflict, with the WLF (Wolves) controlling much of the city while the Seraphites occupy the surrounding islands. NEXT → 06 One of Season 2’s most anticipated casting choices was the actor who plays Abby Anderson. Who portrays Abby in the HBO series? AFlorence Pugh BShannon Berry CKaitlyn Dever DSadie Sink ✓ Correct! Kaitlyn Dever, known for her roles in Booksmart and Unbelievable, was cast as Abby Anderson. The casting was widely praised for bringing emotional depth to one of gaming’s most divisive characters. ✗ Not quite. The answer is Kaitlyn Dever. Best known for Booksmart and the Netflix series Unbelievable, Dever was tapped to play Abby — a character who demands both physical intensity and emotional vulnerability. NEXT → 07 The military authority that controls quarantine zones across the country is known by the acronym FEDRA. What does FEDRA stand for? AFederal Disaster Response Agency BFederal Emergency Defense and Recovery Act CFederal District Reconstitution Authority DFederal Enforcement and Disaster Readiness Administration ✓ Correct! FEDRA — the Federal Disaster Response Agency — is the remnant of the U.S. government that imposes martial law over quarantine zones. In Boston, their authoritarian rule is what the Fireflies are fighting to overthrow. ✗ Not quite. The answer is Federal Disaster Response Agency. FEDRA emerged as the last functioning arm of the U.S. government, enforcing brutal order in quarantine zones. Their oppressive tactics fuel resistance groups like the Fireflies. NEXT → 08 In Season 2, Abby is a member of a large, well-organized militia that controls much of Seattle. What is the full name of this group, commonly known by a three-letter abbreviation? AWestern Liberty Front (WLF) BWolves of the Last Frontier (WLF) CWashington Liberators’ Force (WLF) DWashington Liberation Front (WLF) ✓ Correct! The Washington Liberation Front overthrew FEDRA’s control of the Seattle QZ and established their own society. Led by Isaac Dixon, the WLF are colloquially called the “Wolves” and are locked in a brutal war with the Seraphites. ✗ Not quite. The answer is the Washington Liberation Front. The WLF — nicknamed the “Wolves” — seized Seattle from FEDRA and built a militarized community. Their ongoing war with the Seraphites is central to Season 2’s conflict. REVEAL MY SCORE → Assessment Complete Your Survivor Knowledge Score 🦠 / 8 When you’re lost in the darkness, look for the light. ↻ RETAKE THE TEST Now, ahead of The Last of Us' third season in 2027, Ramsey is opening up about what fans can expect from Abby now that Dever's character is coming to the forefront, leading to Ramsey's Ellie taking a backseat. In a red carpet interview with ScreenRant's Ben Gibbons at BFI London Film Festival for The Liberation, the actor revealed that they can't wait to see "Kaitlyn be Abby." Dever gets to "kick a** and be cool and kind of lead the charge." Because of this switch in who's the lead star of The Last of Us season 3, Ramsey had more time off this year. Production got underway back in March in British Columbia, Canada, and is still ongoing. Ramsey is "excited" for fans to see how the new season turns out, and they're looking forward to it as well because "I haven't seen any of it." ScreenRant: What are you excited for people to see from Kaitlyn Dever’s Abby in season 3 of The Last of Us? Bella Ramsey: "I’m just looking forward to people seeing Kaitlyn be Abby. I got some time off this year. I’m just excited for people to see it, and I’m excited to see it 'cause I haven’t seen any of it. Like what they’ve been up to recently, and to see Kaitlyn kick a** and be cool and kind of lead the charge, lead the show." Before landing the role of Ellie, Ramsey's breakout role in the entertainment industry came in 2016 when they made their debut as Lyanna Mormont on Game of Thrones, which earned the actor a SAG Award nomination for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series. Ramsey went on to star in Holmes & Watson, Judy, Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget, The Sheep Detectives, The Worst Witch, His Dark Materials and Becoming Elizabeth. Then came The Last of Us, which has won several awards over the past three years, including a Peabody. For their performance as Ellie, Ramsey has landed Emmy, Golden Globe, SAG Award and Critics' Choice Award nominations. Unlike Ramsey and Pascal, Dever was not an original cast member on The Last of Us. She made a big impression once she showed up on screen, though. Her character, Abby, was out for vengeance after Joel Miller killed her father when he attempted to operate on Ellie. Abby's mission was ultimately successful, which has had huge ramifications for the rest of the series, including the upcoming third season. The Last of Us season 2 finale ended with Abby, gun in hand, confronting Ellie. A shot was fired as the camera went to black, though it wasn't revealed if Ellie was injured. The final seconds of the episode took The Last of Us back to Day 1 in Seattle, revealing that fans will get to see Abby's story from the beginning, which Ramsey reiterated in their interview with ScreenRant. Release Date January 15, 2023 Network HBO Showrunner Craig Mazin The Last Of Us is a television adaptation of the acclaimed video game series, set in a post-apocalyptic world where a smuggler named Joel (Pedro Pascal) is tasked with escorting a teenage girl, Ellie (Bella Ramsey) across the ravaged United States. Along their journey, they confront various threats from both infected creatures and hostile human factions. Directors Craig Mazin, Peter Hoar, Jeremy Webb, Ali Abbasi, Mark Mylod, Stephen Williams, Jasmila Žbanić, Liza Johnson, Nina Lopez-Corrado Writers Neil Druckmann, Craig Mazin, Halley Wegryn Gross Franchise(s) The Last of Us Main Genre Horror Creator(s) Neil Druckmann, Craig Mazin Executive Producer(s) Asad Qizilbash, Carolyn Strauss, Carter Swan, Craig Mazin, Neil Druckmann, Evan Wells, Rose Lam, Jacqueline Lesko, Cecil O'Connor Producers Greg Spence, Allen Marshall Palmer, Emiliano Urquiza, Cecil O'Connor Seasons 2 Story By Neil Druckmann, Bruce Straley Streaming Service(s) MAX Franchise The Last of Us