Why Did They Kill Off Joel in ‘The Last of Us’? Find Out

The Last of Us isn’t pulling any punches. As many of the international is aware of via now, episode 2 of season 2 killed off one primary persona: Joel Miller (performed via Pedro Pascal). The heartbreaking scene displays Ellie (Bella Ramsey) sobbing as she watches her surrogate father die by the hands of Abby (Kaitlyn Dever). Though lovers of the unique online game knew his dying used to be coming, they didn’t assume it might come so quickly. So, why did HBO kill off Joel in season 2?

Below, Hollywood Life is breaking down the entirety we find out about Joel’s on-screen dying.

Is Joel Really Dead in The Last of Us?

Yes, Joel used to be brutally crushed and fatally stabbed via Abby in Season 2, Episode 2. After his dying, Ellie and Tommy (Gabriel Luna) convey his frame again to the town. While Joel is now not alive within the display’s provide timeline, his tale isn’t over. Pascal will proceed to seem all the way through the season in flashbacks.

Why Did They Kill off Joel in The Last of Us?

The solution is understated: The Last of Us kills off Joel for the reason that online game does the similar, and the HBO adaptation follows the storyline. Fans at all times knew that Joel would die, as did Pedro, which the actor informed Entertainment Weekly after that surprising episode aired in April 2025.

“It’s not like they said, ‘Hey, we kill you at the beginning of season 2,’ but it was always an understanding that it would stay true to the source material in a specific way and that the, let’s say, practical and exclusive obligation would be for season 1,” Pedro informed the e-newsletter. “It was just a matter of how and when.”

In season 2, episode 2, Abby and the ultimate of the Fireflies seek out Joel to avenge the deaths of the folks he killed: infantrymen and the physician who used to be going to separate Ellie open, who came about to be Abby’s father. Abby by accident stumbles upon Joel within the frigid snow fall whilst a ferocious pack of Cordyceps monsters are at the prowl. She lures Joel and Dina (Isabela Merced) again to a resort the place the opposite Fireflies are hiding, the place they knock out Dina, and Abby beats Joel. Ellie unearths them and makes an attempt to shoot Abby, however probably the most Fireflies holds her down whilst she watches Joel die a bloody dying. As they go away the room, Ellie vows to kill them.

How to Watch The Last of Us

All episodes of The Last of Us are to be had to observe on HBO and to movement on Max.

What Time Does The Last of Us Episodes Air?

Each new episode of The Last of Us airs on HBO and Max at 9 p.m. ET/ 6 p.m. PT on Sundays.

Is There a Season 3 of The Last of Us?

Yes, HBO renewed The Last of Us for season 3.