The The Last of Us Season 2 cast significantly expands the world around Joel and Ellie, bringing several major characters from The Last of Us Part II into HBO’s adaptation. Kaitlyn Dever joins as Abby, Isabela Merced plays Dina, Young Mazino appears as Jesse, and Jeffrey Wright takes on Isaac after previously voicing the character in the video game. Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey also return as Joel and Ellie, alongside other familiar faces from Season 1. Here is a spoiler-light guide to the new and returning characters.
The Last of Us Season 2 Cast at a Glance
HBO confirmed a combination of returning stars and major newcomers for the second season. HBO’s official Season 2 cast announcement
This expanded cast of The Last of Us Season 2 reflects the wider scope of the story, with new characters connected both to Jackson and to the conflicts developing beyond the settlement.
Who Plays Abby in The Last of Us Season 2?
Kaitlyn Dever plays Abby in The Last of Us Season 2.
For viewers searching for The Last of Us Season 2 cast Abby, Dever is one of the season’s most important additions. Abby enters the story with a personal connection to events that happened before Season 2, but explaining that connection in detail would reveal major spoilers.
The The Last of Us Season 2 Abby actress is known for projects including Dopesick, Booksmart and Unbelievable. Her casting was one of HBO’s most closely watched Season 2 announcements.
The adaptation does not require Dever to physically reproduce every aspect of Abby’s video-game design. Instead, the series centers the character’s motivations, emotional history and place within the larger conflict.
For anyone searching Kaitlyn Dever The Last of Us Season 2 Abby, the simple answer is that she plays HBO’s live-action version of Abby throughout Season 2.
Who Plays Dina in The Last of Us Season 2?
Isabela Merced plays Dina.
The The Last of Us Season 2 cast Dina role belongs to Merced, who becomes one of Bella Ramsey’s most important scene partners during the season.
Dina lives in Jackson and has a close friendship with Ellie that gradually becomes more emotionally significant. She is also connected to Jesse, another member of the Jackson community.
The The Last of Us Season 2 cast Isabela Merced addition gives the season a character who can balance humor, confidence and emotional vulnerability without taking attention away from Ellie’s larger journey.
Merced’s Dina is based on the character introduced in The Last of Us Part II, although HBO makes its own choices about how relationships and events unfold on screen.
Who Plays Isaac?
Jeffrey Wright plays Isaac.
Isaac is the leader of the Washington Liberation Front, commonly known as the WLF, a powerful faction operating in Seattle.
Wright has a particularly notable connection to the source material: he also voiced and performed Isaac in The Last of Us Part II. That makes him one of the clearest direct casting bridges between the HBO adaptation and the video game.
His return allows the television version to retain a familiar interpretation of Isaac while giving the character additional live-action presence. Variety confirmed Wright’s casting alongside the season’s other major newcomers. Variety’s Season 2 casting report
Who Plays Jesse?
Young Mazino plays Jesse in Season 2.
Jesse is an important member of Jackson and someone trusted with responsibilities inside the community. He also has personal connections to both Ellie and Dina.
Mazino, who earned wider recognition through Beef, brings a grounded quality to Jesse. The character is practical and dependable, providing an important contrast to some of the more impulsive personalities surrounding him.
His role becomes particularly useful in showing how life in Jackson has developed since the first season.
Bella Ramsey Returns as Ellie
Bella Ramsey returns as Ellie, continuing the performance that anchored much of Season 1.
The The Last of Us Season 2 cast Bella Ramsey storyline begins several years after the events of the first season. Ellie is older, more independent and increasingly involved in Jackson’s patrols and community life.
Those changes allow Ramsey to play a version of Ellie who still carries recognizable traits from Season 1 while facing a different set of relationships and responsibilities.
For viewers looking up Bella Ramsey The Last of Us Season 2 cast, there has been no change in the role: Ramsey remains HBO’s Ellie.
Is Pedro Pascal in The Last of Us Season 2?
Yes. Pedro Pascal returns as Joel in The Last of Us Season 2.
The Pedro Pascal The Last of Us Season 2 cast role continues Joel’s story after the events of the Season 1 finale. He now lives in Jackson, where his relationship with Ellie has become more complicated.
Season 2 uses Joel differently than the first season because the story has moved beyond their cross-country journey, but Pascal remains one of the central returning performers.
HBO officially listed both Pascal and Ramsey among the returning Season 2 cast members.
Abby’s Friends and the WLF Cast
Several of the new characters are connected to Abby and the Washington Liberation Front.
Tati Gabrielle plays Nora, a military medic with links to Abby’s group. Gabrielle is known for You, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina and Uncharted.
Ariela Barer plays Mel, a doctor associated with the same circle of characters. Mel’s medical responsibilities and personal relationships give her a distinct role within the group.
Spencer Lord plays Owen, another figure closely connected to Abby. His history with the group becomes important as the story expands beyond Jackson.
Danny Ramirez plays Manny in Season 2. Ramirez portrays the character throughout HBO’s second season and is part of Abby’s circle.
There is an important distinction for readers following later casting news: Ramirez’s replacement concerns Season 3, not Season 2. Variety reported that the Manny role would be recast for Season 3 because of a scheduling conflict.
Who Does Catherine O’Hara Play?
Catherine O’Hara plays Gail, a therapist in Jackson.
Gail is an original character created for the HBO version rather than a direct recreation of a major character from The Last of Us Part II. She provides another perspective on everyday life inside Jackson and interacts with Joel in a setting very different from the action-heavy parts of the story.
The role allows the adaptation to explore character psychology and community life without relying exclusively on material already shown in the game. Variety identified Gail as Joel’s therapist in its detailed Season 2 feature.
Who Plays Eugene?
Joe Pantoliano plays Eugene.
Players of The Last of Us Part II may recognize the name, although Eugene has a much smaller presence in the game and is largely discussed through information left behind.
HBO expands him into an on-screen character, allowing the adaptation to explore a figure who existed mostly in the background of the original game.
Pantoliano’s casting was revealed as part of Variety’s reporting on how Season 2 expands and reinterprets material from Part II. Variety’s report on the Season 2 adaptation and Eugene casting
Which Season 1 Cast Members Return?
Several important Season 1 performers return in The Last of Us Season 2.
Bella Ramsey continues as Ellie, while Pedro Pascal returns as Joel. Gabriel Luna is back as Joel’s brother Tommy, and Rutina Wesley returns as Maria.
Tommy and Maria have particular importance to Jackson, where they are established members of the community. Their return helps connect the new season’s larger ensemble to characters and relationships already established during Season 1.
HBO officially listed all four actors among its returning cast.
New Cast Members in The Last of Us Season 2
The second season introduces a substantial group of new performers:
- Kaitlyn Dever as Abby
- Isabela Merced as Dina
- Young Mazino as Jesse
- Jeffrey Wright as Isaac
- Tati Gabrielle as Nora
- Ariela Barer as Mel
- Spencer Lord as Owen
- Danny Ramirez as Manny
- Catherine O’Hara as Gail
- Joe Pantoliano as Eugene
Abby, Dina and Jesse are among the most immediately important additions, while characters such as Isaac and the WLF members broaden the world beyond Jackson.
Rather than simply adding guest stars, Season 2 builds a larger ensemble needed to adapt the more complex network of characters found in The Last of Us Part II.
The Last of Us Season 2 Cast vs. the Video Game
HBO’s casting generally follows the identities and narrative functions of characters from The Last of Us Part II without trying to duplicate the game performers visually.
Kaitlyn Dever takes over the live-action role of Abby, while Isabela Merced becomes Dina and Young Mazino plays Jesse.
The most direct connection is Jeffrey Wright as Isaac. Wright performed Isaac in the video game and returned to portray the character in live action, making his casting unusually consistent across both versions.
Other characters are expanded or reinterpreted for television. Eugene, for example, has significantly more presence in the HBO adaptation than he does in the game, while Gail was created specifically for the television series.
Which Cast Members Could Return in Season 3?
Several Season 2 characters are positioned to remain relevant as HBO continues adapting The Last of Us Part II, although the exact role of each performer depends on how the next chapter structures the story.
Casting can also change between seasons, as demonstrated by Manny: Danny Ramirez played him in Season 2, while the role was later recast for Season 3 because of scheduling conflicts.
For the latest information about the next chapter, returning characters, casting updates and release plans, read our guide to The Last of Us Season 3.
The Last of Us Season 2 Cast FAQs
Who plays Abby in The Last of Us Season 2?
Kaitlyn Dever plays Abby in The Last of Us Season 2. Abby is one of the biggest new characters introduced in the season and has important connections to events from the first season. Dever takes over the role played by Laura Bailey in the video game.
Who plays Dina in The Last of Us Season 2?
Isabela Merced plays Dina. She is a member of the Jackson community and develops a close relationship with Ellie. Merced joins the show as one of Season 2’s most prominent new performers and shares significant screen time with Bella Ramsey.
Who plays Isaac in The Last of Us Season 2?
Jeffrey Wright plays Isaac, the leader of the Washington Liberation Front. Wright also portrayed Isaac in The Last of Us Part II video game, making him one of the actors directly carrying the same character from the game into HBO’s live-action adaptation.
Who plays Jesse in The Last of Us Season 2?
Young Mazino plays Jesse. Jesse is a trusted member of Jackson who is connected to both Dina and Ellie. Mazino joined the HBO series after gaining major recognition for his performance in Netflix’s Beef.
Who plays Manny in Season 2?
Danny Ramirez plays Manny in The Last of Us Season 2. Manny is part of Abby’s group and is connected to the WLF storyline. Later reports about Manny being recast apply specifically to Season 3 and do not change Ramirez’s Season 2 role.
Is Pedro Pascal in The Last of Us Season 2?
Yes. Pedro Pascal returns as Joel in Season 2. Joel is living in Jackson after the events of the first season, and his relationship with Ellie remains central to the story even as the cast expands with several major new characters.
Is Bella Ramsey still Ellie?
Yes. Bella Ramsey continues playing Ellie in The Last of Us Season 2. The second season takes place years after Season 1, allowing Ramsey to portray an older Ellie with greater independence and a more established role within the Jackson community.
Who are the new cast members in Season 2?
Major newcomers include Kaitlyn Dever as Abby, Isabela Merced as Dina, Young Mazino as Jesse, Jeffrey Wright as Isaac, Tati Gabrielle as Nora, Ariela Barer as Mel, Spencer Lord as Owen, Danny Ramirez as Manny, Catherine O’Hara as Gail and Joe Pantoliano as Eugene.
Final Thoughts
The The Last of Us Season 2 cast is considerably larger than the ensemble viewers followed during Joel and Ellie’s original journey. Returning stars Bella Ramsey and Pedro Pascal are joined by Kaitlyn Dever, Isabela Merced, Young Mazino, Jeffrey Wright and a wider group of characters connected to Jackson and the WLF.
That expansion gives Season 2 the cast needed to move deeper into the characters and conflicts of The Last of Us Part II without losing the relationships established in HBO’s first season.
