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Neil Druckmann departed HBO Max's adaptation of The Last of Us following the end of season 2, leaving his co-showrunner Craig Mazin in charge of The Last of Us season 3. Now, in an interview with Variety, Druckman has explained the reasons for his departure and his return to focusing solely on running Naughty Dog, the developer that initially produced The Last of Us game series.
"It was right when we were about to start the writers' room for Season 3," Druckmann explains. "I looked at what's in front of me, what would the next season might look like, and with all the various Last of Us things I'm working on - not just the show - with all the various games I'm working on, the biggest one that takes up most of my time is Intergalactic: The Heretic Profit, our next big IP for Naughty Dog and PlayStation, it felt like I could better serve all of my responsibilities if I stayed at a higher level."
Intergalactic: The Heretic Profit is a third-person sci-fi adventure where players take on the role of a space-faring bounty hunter. The gameplay hasn't been fully revealed, and no release date has yet been announced. But Naughty Dog has been billing it as its next smash-hit. Naughty Dog's focus on the new franchise is what led Druckmann to reassess his role as co-showrunner on HBO Max's The Last of Us.
"It was quite challenging to be as involved as a co-showrunner on Season 1 and Season 2, while running a studio and working and directing and writing a game. I really appreciated at Naughty Dog how many people stepped up while I was gone working on Season 2," Druckmann continues. "Specifically, I spent quite a bit of effort on Episode 206 - prepping it, writing it, directing it. I wasn't sure if I'd be able to do that again. So I felt it around that period when we're wrapping up all the press and really about to get started with earnest in Season 3, that was a good time to reassess everything."
The Last of Us season 3 is expected to premiere in 2027. That said, fans have a lot to look forward to as remaining showrunner Craig Mazin has promised that The Last of Us season 3 will be longer than season 2.
