section_path: Production/Writing
section_name: Writing
paragraph_text: Writing
  
  A writers' room for the second season was established in Los Angeles by February 2023, with Mazin and Druckmann joined by Halley Gross, who co-wrote Part II with Druckmann, and Bo Shim, a new writer. Gross was also named co-executive producer. Lesko was present as the writers outlined the season, which they used as "their emotional temperature". Druckmann worked on the story during development of The Last of Us Part II Remastered (2024), allowing him to revisit and analyze its decisions and intricacies. The writers felt added pressure in working on the second season due to the success of the first. They began by splitting Part II ' s narrative into sections, then selecting some for the second season; the seven-episode length was chosen as a natural breaking point. They experimented with several methods of presenting the non-linear timeline, settling on what they found to be the "most impactful". Splitting across seasons prompted narrative rearrangement to present information earlier than in the game, such as Abby's backstory and relationships.: 0:25 Some changes were also made as the game's shifting player perspective between Ellie and Abby no longer applied. Material removed from the game, including some presented in Part II Remastered, was added to the series.
  
  Druckmann considered himself biased when adapting the "intimately familiar" story and tried to keep an open mind with changes; he and Mazin generally agreed. Scripts were being written by April 2023, with a full outline mapped, but writing was impacted by the writers' strike in May; Mazin submitted the first episode about 90 minutes before the strike began, and neither he nor Druckmann worked on the series while the strike was ongoing. Instead, Mazin mentally outlined scenes while taking walks, described as "brain-writing", as he planned to quickly complete scripts after the strike to ensure a smooth production schedule. Mazin wrote the first five episodes and co-wrote the final two with Druckmann and Gross. The second season features themes of revenge, in contrast to the first season's unconditional love; Druckmann felt it was a "continuation of love from the first season, and this is just the dark side of that coin". The second season, like the first, highlights several duos, such as Ellie and Dina.
  
  The second season is set five years after the first-season finale, following the impact of Joel's lie to Ellie, which Mazin called the season's "beating heart". It explores themes of tribalism and the impact of losing loved ones from within one's group, and the troubling view of heroism when viewed from alternative perspectives. It also highlights themes of change, growth, and escalation, reflected internally within characters like Ellie and communities like Jackson, Wyoming, as well as in the outside world, demonstrated by the enhanced types of infected. Viewers' requests for additional infected scenes after the first season aligned with Druckmann and Mazin's own feelings, resulting in more focus on the infected in the second season. The writers' familiarity with the show's production allowed for more action sequences, through which they maintained connections to character development. Mazin felt the first season's limited action sequences were a result of its focus on Joel and Ellie, whereas the second season's additional characters granted a broader focus.: 41:25 He wanted action sequences to demonstrate the desperation and loss that the characters often forget, partly inspired by the Game of Thrones episode " Hardhome " (2015). Spores—the vector through which infection is spread in the games—return as a secondary vector in the second season, having been replaced by tendrils forming a unified network.
  
  A writers' room for the second season was established in Los Angeles by February 2023, with Mazin and Druckmann joined by Halley Gross, who co-wrote Part II with Druckmann, and Bo Shim, a new writer. Gross was also named co-executive producer. Lesko was present as the writers outlined the season, which they used as "their emotional temperature". Druckmann worked on the story during development of The Last of Us Part II Remastered (2024), allowing him to revisit and analyze its decisions and intricacies. The writers felt added pressure in working on the second season due to the success of the first. They began by splitting Part II ' s narrative into sections, then selecting some for the second season; the seven-episode length was chosen as a natural breaking point. They experimented with several methods of presenting the non-linear timeline, settling on what they found to be the "most impactful". Splitting across seasons prompted narrative rearrangement to present information earlier than in the game, such as Abby's backstory and relationships.: 0:25 Some changes were also made as the game's shifting player perspective between Ellie and Abby no longer applied. Material removed from the game, including some presented in Part II Remastered, was added to the series.
  
  Druckmann considered himself biased when adapting the "intimately familiar" story and tried to keep an open mind with changes; he and Mazin generally agreed. Scripts were being written by April 2023, with a full outline mapped, but writing was impacted by the writers' strike in May; Mazin submitted the first episode about 90 minutes before the strike began, and neither he nor Druckmann worked on the series while the strike was ongoing. Instead, Mazin mentally outlined scenes while taking walks, described as "brain-writing", as he planned to quickly complete scripts after the strike to ensure a smooth production schedule. Mazin wrote the first five episodes and co-wrote the final two with Druckmann and Gross. The second season features themes of revenge, in contrast to the first season's unconditional love; Druckmann felt it was a "continuation of love from the first season, and this is just the dark side of that coin". The second season, like the first, highlights several duos, such as Ellie and Dina.
  
  The second season is set five years after the first-season finale, following the impact of Joel's lie to Ellie, which Mazin called the season's "beating heart". It explores themes of tribalism and the impact of losing loved ones from within one's group, and the troubling view of heroism when viewed from alternative perspectives. It also highlights themes of change, growth, and escalation, reflected internally within characters like Ellie and communities like Jackson, Wyoming, as well as in the outside world, demonstrated by the enhanced types of infected. Viewers' requests for additional infected scenes after the first season aligned with Druckmann and Mazin's own feelings, resulting in more focus on the infected in the second season. The writers' familiarity with the show's production allowed for more action sequences, through which they maintained connections to character development. Mazin felt the first season's limited action sequences were a result of its focus on Joel and Ellie, whereas the second season's additional characters granted a broader focus.: 41:25 He wanted action sequences to demonstrate the desperation and loss that the characters often forget, partly inspired by the Game of Thrones episode " Hardhome " (2015). Spores—the vector through which infection is spread in the games—return as a secondary vector in the second season, having been replaced by tendrils forming a unified network.