Right on the heels of announcing that Kaitlyn Dever will play Abby in The Last of Us Season 2, HBO has revealed another casting for the highly anticipated next installment.
Young Mazino will play Jesse who, as those who've played The Last of Us Part 2 know, is a resident of Jackson and friend of Ellie's. As HBO describes, he's "a pillar of his community who puts everyone else’s needs before his own, sometimes at terrible cost."
“Young is one of those rare actors who is immediately undeniable the moment you see him," executive producers/co-creators/writers/directors Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann said in a joint statement. "We’re so lucky to have him, and we can’t wait for the audience to see Young shine in our show.”
Mazino's biggest role so far was a breakout part in Netflix's critically acclaimed comedy-drama Beef, in which he played the younger brother of Steven Yeun's character. The show is up for a handful of big awards at next week's Primetime Emmys ceremony, including a nomination for Mazino himself in the Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie category.
It's the latest development as The Last of Us continues to round out its Season 2 cast. No casting announcement, however, was perhaps quite as anticipated as Abby's, and everyone from game voice actor Laura Bailey to show stars Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey were quick to show support for Dever.
We don't know too much else about The Last of Us Season 2 yet, apart from the fact that it's slated to debut sometime in 2025. The first season, of course, was a massive hit, scoring multiple wins at last weekend's Creative Arts Emmys ceremony and up for more at the Primetime Emmys.
It was also one of IGN's favorite shows of 2023 - as was Beef - and we gave it a 9/10 in our Season 1 review.
Alex Stedman is a Senior News Editor with IGN, overseeing entertainment reporting. When she's not writing or editing, you can find her reading fantasy novels or playing Dungeons & Dragons.
