HBO has cast The Last of Us season 3’s Seraphites, Yara and Lev.
Bridgerton’s Michelle Mao will play Yara, while Star Wars: Skeleton Crew’s Kyriana Kratter will play Lev. As reported by Deadline, HBO held an “inclusive casting for Lev with young actors of different backgrounds”, after which 15-year-old Kratter secured the role.
Kratter’s appointment as a transgender character has caused a little consternation amongst fans, particularly, as one player preminded us, the casting team “did go out of their way to find a small Deaf Black child [Sam] who was fluent in ALS for a role […] simply because the pool of actors was nonexistent”.
It’s currently suspected the upcoming third season will be its last. Clea DuVall and Jorge Lendeborg Jr. will both join The Last of Us for the show’s upcoming season, along with Patrick Wilson as Abby’s father, Jerry, and Jason Ritter, who will play Hanley, a WLF soldier.
Last year, Neil Druckmann announced he was stepping back from the series after The Last of Us season two, in order to focus on Naughty Dog‘s gaming output, which includes Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet. Druckmann had previously worked on The Last of Us’ adaptation as a co-showrunner, director, writer and producer.
While he’s returned to full-time video game development, Druckmann has since said he will remain somewhat involved in The Last of Us’ adaptation at a “very high level” to make sure it’s “as deeply faithful” as the show’s first season was.
