The Last of Us season 3: Does Jesse die in The Last of Us season 2 finale?

HBO's The Last of Us season 2 aired its finale on May 25, 2025. Titled Convergence, it is directed by Nina Lopez-Corrado and written by Halley Gross.

Showrunners Neil Druckmann and Craig Mazin bring Ellie and Abby face-to-face for the first time since Joel's death, and their confrontation leads to Abby killing Jesse.

The second installment of the acclaimed series started airing on April 13, 2025. It was adapted from The Last of Us II video game from Naughty Dog, which was released in June 2020 for PlayStation 4. Greg Spence, Cecil O'Connor, Allen Marshall Palmer, and Julie Herrin are among the show's producers.

The official synopsis of The Last of Us season 2, as per HBO, reads:

"Season 2 of The Last of Us picks up five years after the events of Season 1. Joel and Ellie’s collective past catches up to them, drawing them into conflict with each other and a world even more dangerous and unpredictable than the one they left behind."

How was Jesse killed in the finale of The Last of Us season 2?

The finale of The Last of Us season 2 centers on Ellie and Dina's third day in Seattle. Jesse learns from Ellie that Dina is carrying his child. He goes to search for Tommy after intercepting a WLF radio call.

Meanwhile, Ellie heads to the aquarium where Abby is supposedly hiding, but she ends up on the Seraphites' island and is captured by members of the religious cult. When the WLF sneak attacks the Seraphites, she uses it as an opportunity to escape. At the aquarium, Ellie confronts Mel and Owen for information on Abby, accidentally shooting the pregnant Mel in the process.

Mel begs her in vain to deliver the baby via C-section before she bleeds to death. Visibly disturbed by the encounter, Ellie heads back to the theater with Jesse and Tommy and agrees to return to their settlement in Jackson. However, Abby shows up at the theater and kills Jesse before taking Tommy hostage at gunpoint. Ellie offers herself in response, saying that she is the reason Joel killed her father.

Enraged, Abby tells her that she squandered her chance to live and fires a shot from her gun in the final moments of season 2. The Last of Us season 3 will reportedly focus on the story from Abby's perspective.

A brief recap of The Last of Us season 2

The Last of Us season 2 kicks off five years after season 1, when Joel rescued Ellie from the Fireflies, who wanted to use her immune brain cells to create a vaccine for the Cordyceps infection. Since Ellie would have most certainly died from the procedure, Joel saved her life by killing nineteen Fireflies in cold blood before taking off with her.

He initially hides his murderous actions from Ellie, but comes clean after her 19th birthday. He tearfully confesses that his actions were a reflection of his love for her. Despite feeling betrayed, Ellie seems committed to mending their relationship. They live in a settlement in Jackson, Wyoming, along with Joel's brother, Tommy, and his wife, Maria.

However, Abby, the daughter of one of the slain Fireflies, tracks down Joel and murders him as revenge, while Ellie watches helplessly. Three months later, Ellie and her romantic partner, Dina, leave for Seattle to bring Abby and her friends, who are members of the WLF, to justice. Jesse and Tommy follow them to Seattle, not long after.

In the city, Ellie and Dina encounter a dangerous religious cult called the Seraphites and the infected while searching for Abby's whereabouts. They also find themselves in the crosshairs of a gang war between the WLF and FEDRA, the Federal Disaster Response Agency.

Ellie reveals to Dina that she is immune after getting bitten, while the latter reveals that she is pregnant with Jesse's child.

Also read: The Last of Us season 3 is officially happening as HBO confirms renewal before season 2 premiere

Viewers can watch all episodes of The Last of Us season 2 on HBO Max.

About the author

Deepti is an entertainment writer at Sportskeeda. She comes with more than 6 years of experience in the creative writing field and has written extensively for the entertainment and travel domains.

She holds a degree in Chemistry, but her true interest always lay in the creative field. A passion for reading from a young age fueled her desire to make a career change later in life and take up writing as her profession.

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Edited by Siddharth Sikdar