The ending of The Last of Us season 2 didn’t just land, it exploded.
After seven emotionally charged episodes, HBO’s adaptation of the acclaimed video game delivered a final chapter packed with heartbreak, bloodshed, and a cliffhanger so brutal it left fans yelling at their screens. With Ellie and Abby finally facing off, the tension hit a breaking point, but the screen cuts to black before anyone knows who made it out alive.
The episode kicks off in chaos. Jesse is on a desperate mission to save Dina after she’s injured by a Seraphite’s arrow. As he and Ellie tend to her, they overhear W.L.F. chatter that Tommy may be involved in a sniper situation. Jesse’s suspicion grows when he learns that Ellie already knew about Dina’s pregnancy and failed to tell him. Despite being in the middle of a rescue, the emotional weight is growing.
When Jesse and Ellie argue about their next move, things splinter. Jesse wants to prioritize Tommy, but Ellie is laser-focused on one thing: revenge. She breaks off from Jesse, hell-bent on hunting down Abby, the woman who murdered Joel. Taking a fishing boat, Ellie attempts to head for the Seattle aquarium, rumored to be Abby’s hideout, but a fierce storm knocks her off course. She ends up captured by Seraphites, also known as the religiously radical cult “Scars,” and narrowly escapes thanks to an unexpected W.L.F. assault on their village.
Ellie reaches the aquarium and encounters Owen and Mel, Abby’s close friends. Things go downhill fast. Owen draws his weapon, prompting Ellie to shoot him. Mel, who is visibly pregnant, pleads with Ellie, but in the chaos, Ellie kills her too. The aftermath is traumatic. Ellie tries to save Mel’s unborn baby, but it’s too late. Guilt begins to creep in, especially after she realizes she’s killed someone pregnant, a mirror to Dina’s own condition.
Just when everything feels like it’s spiraling, Tommy and Jesse show up to bring Ellie back to the theater where Dina has been hiding. The group regathers, emotionally shattered, and it briefly seems like Ellie might give up her obsession with vengeance. But that hope vanishes as quickly as it came.
Tommy is ambushed. Jesse immediately springs into action, but before he can do anything, he’s shot in the head by Abby. The suddenness of Jesse’s death is gut-wrenching, and the show doesn’t linger, it keeps moving. Ellie, now cornered, tosses away her gun and confesses to killing Owen and Mel. Abby, seething with rage and grief, has no sympathy. She tells Ellie, “I let you live and you wasted it,” then points her gun and pulls the trigger. But instead of showing what happens next, the screen cuts to black. A single gunshot rings out, and fans are left in total suspense. Who was shot? Ellie? Abby? Did Dina intervene? It’s anyone’s guess.
To twist the knife further, the show flashes back to an earlier point in Abby’s timeline. She’s seen living inside a massive W.L.F. base that was once a football stadium. This segment gives us a deeper glimpse into Abby’s world and sets the stage for the next season, which will reportedly focus more heavily on her journey. Catherine O’Hara, who plays therapist Gail Lynden, hinted that season 3 will explore Abby’s story in detail, adding complexity to a character many fans are still grappling with.
One confirmed death is Jesse’s. Neil Druckmann stated that his death, like in the original game, was always planned. Tommy, however, survives his injuries. While his future remains uncertain, his continued presence ensures another potential thread of revenge or reconciliation going forward.
The emotional toll doesn’t stop there. Ellie finally confesses to Dina what really happened at the Firefly hospital in Salt Lake City, that Joel killed the doctors who were about to operate on her, robbing the world of a possible cure to save her life. One of those doctors, as we now know, was Abby’s father. The confession drives a wedge between the couple. Dina wants to return to Jackson and offers Ellie a bracelet before she leaves. It’s a subtle but powerful moment that suggests their relationship may not survive the weight of everything they’ve endured.
The season closes with every character fractured, broken, and deeply changed. The war between the W.L.F. and the Seraphites continues to rage. Ellie is haunted by guilt and vengeance. Abby is hardened by loss. And we, the viewers, are left dangling on the edge of the unknown. The black screen and single gunshot have sparked intense speculation online. HBO hasn’t revealed who lived or died, only confirming that season 3 is happening and will continue to explore both Ellie and Abby’s stories.
What’s clear is that The Last of Us has no interest in giving us easy answers. This isn’t a story about good vs. evil, it’s a story about pain, grief, and the choices people make when everything they love is ripped away. Season 2 proved once again that revenge rarely brings peace, and everyone pays the price.
