Presuming we do get The Last of Us Part 3 at some point – and as much doesn't seem unlikely – Joel probably won't be in it. No spoilers yet, but if you know you know. Nonetheless, Troy Baker, the voice actor behind the grizzled protagonist of the first Last of Us game, believes we'll see him again in some shape or form.
OK, we're about to get into spoiler territory if you've not played The Last of Us Part 2 or watched the second season of the TV show.
In a surprise twist, the former opens with Joel getting killed by a vengeful Abby for his actions in the first game, and the latter adapts this plot point wholesale. Baker didn't enjoy the moment any more the second time around, and hopes to see more performers besides himself and Pedro Pascal – Joel's actor in the HBO series – take on the mantle.
"I hope that Pedro is not the last person to play Joel," he tells Eurogamer. "I want to see this character be proliferated and iterated on in multiple mediums, whether it be TV, film, more games, comic books. I see people that cosplay as [Joel] all the time – he made an impact."
Sure enough, walking the floor of any pop culture or games convention, you're likely to spot someone in Joel's trademark dark green plaid, potentially with an Ellie in tow. They are both icons of the medium, despite how little material we've seen them in. Nonetheless, Baker is adamant we'll be seeing more of Joel at some point.
"I definitely know we've not seen the last of Joel, whether that be Naughty Dog or somebody else," he states. The definitive nature of his statement makes me think he's perhaps aware of some spin-off or other that's in the works – or he's just manifesting more work for himself.
Either way, I can believe it. If Naughty Dog itself is working on The Last of Us 3, giving another Sony team – or even Baker's own outfit which he's mulling over – some form of prequel that features Joel during the earlier years of the Cordyceps onslaught doesn't seem unlikely. The show is already running out of game narrative to adapt, no doubt prompting discussions behind the scenes of how quickly more chapters can be created.
There's also the possibility of a Joel-centric TV series or other material, since the HBO adaptation's been such a success. We could speculate forever, as the point is the possibility is high. We'll see what emerges.
