Last of Us Season 2: Dever on Online Reactions to Abby

Actress Kaitlyn Dever, cast as Abby in The Last of Us Season 2, acknowledges the difficulty of ignoring online reactions to her portrayal. The character of Abby has been the target of significant online toxicity, with harassment directed at Naughty Dog employees, including Neil Druckmann and Laura Bailey, even extending to threats and abuse against Bailey's family. This negative response prompted HBO to provide Dever with additional security during filming. Isabel Merced, who plays Dina, commented on the disturbing reality of fans directing hate towards a fictional character: "There's so many strange people in this world because there are people that actually genuinely hate Abby, who is not a real person. Just a reminder: not a real person."

The Last of Us Season 2 Character Posters

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In a ScreenRant interview, Dever discussed the anticipation surrounding her portrayal of Abby. She admitted that while she tries to avoid online commentary, it's difficult to completely ignore, especially leading up to the show's release. Her focus, however, remained on collaborating with Neil Druckmann and Craig Mazin to authentically portray Abby's core personality, motivations, and emotional complexities, including her anger, frustration, and grief.

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Neil Druckmann recently explained that the HBO adaptation will diverge from the game's depiction of Abby's physique. He and Craig Mazin, speaking to Entertainment Weekly, clarified that Dever didn't need to undergo significant physical transformation for the role, as Abby's physicality doesn't need to mirror the game's mechanics in the same way. Druckmann emphasized that Dever was the perfect choice for the role, highlighting the differing requirements between the game's dual protagonist perspectives: "In the game, you have to play both [Ellie and Abby] and we need them to play differently. We needed Ellie to feel smaller and kind of maneuver around, and Abby was meant to play more like Joel in that she's almost like a brute in the way she can physically manhandle certain things. That doesn't play as big of a role in this version of the story because there's not as much violent action moment to moment. It's more about the drama." Mazin added, "I personally think there is an amazing opportunity here to delve into someone who is perhaps physically more vulnerable than the Abby in the game, but whose spirit is stronger. And then the question is: 'Where does her formidable nature come from and how does it manifest?' That's something that will be explored now and later."

This "now and later" comment hints at HBO's intention to adapt The Last of Us Part II beyond a single season. Mazin has previously indicated that the game's narrative is extensive enough to warrant further adaptation. While a Season 3 isn't confirmed, Season 2 is structured with a natural conclusion after seven episodes.