The Last of Us season 2 all but completes its cast with Marvel, Mortal Kombat, and Riverdale actors

(Image credit: HBO)

The Last of Us season 2 has rounded out its cast by adding multiple well-known characters from Naughty Dog's game sequel.

As per Variety, Captain America: Brave New World actor Danny Ramirez will play Manny, Ariela Barer (Runaways) will play Mel, Tati Gabrielle (Uncharted, Mortal Kombat 2) is Nora, and Riverdale's Spencer Lord is Owen.

The actors will share the screen with returning leads Bella Ramsey and Pedro Pascal, who will reprise their iconic roles as Ellie and Joel, respectively. Filming on the new batch of episodes is current underway, so it's no wonder most (if not all) of the major players have now been revealed.

In January, the network announced that Beef breakout Young Mazino is set to play Jesse in the apocalypse drama's next chapter, while Isabela Merced has been lined up to bring Ellie's lover Dina to life. The biggest shocker, despite it being heavily rumored however, was Kaitlyn Dever being cast as Abby Anderson, a controversial character who Ellie goes toe to toe with in The Last of Us 2.

Owen Moore in The Last of Us Part II — (Image credit: Naughty Dog/PlayStation)

Owen, as gamers will know, is romantically linked to Abby but, as with most in the world of The Last of Us, their relationship is complicated. When we first meet Owen in the game, he's officially dating Mel, though it's made clear through flashbacks that he and Abby were an item for many years – and they've not quite cut ties in that regard. Like Abby, he was a Firefly soldier, before the organization broke down and he became a member of the Washington Liberation Front (WLF), or the Salt Lake Crew.

Manny, meanwhile, is a close friend of Abby, while Nora and Mel are members of the WLF who, in the game sequel at least, end up crossing paths with Ellie.

On the topic of season 2 newcomers, Bella Ramsey told us that she's "incredibly happy" with who has been cast.

"It’s exciting for me. I’m happy to have a whole new bunch of people come and join the family. It’s gonna be a lot of fun."

The Last of Us season 2 doesn't have a specific release date yet, but we can expect it to air sometime in 2025. While we wait for more info (and perhaps more casting news in the coming days), check out our guide to all of the new TV shows heading our way.

I'm the Senior Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, focusing on news, features, and interviews with some of the biggest names in film and TV. On-site, you'll find me marveling at Marvel and providing analysis and room temperature takes on the newest films, Star Wars and, of course, anime. Outside of GR, I love getting lost in a good 100-hour JRPG, Warzone, and kicking back on the (virtual) field with Football Manager. My work has also been featured in OPM, FourFourTwo, and Game Revolution.

With contributions from

Amy West