Ellie’s final choice in season 2 might change everything in The Last of Us season 3

The Last of Us season 3 has been confirmed days before the second season of the HBO hit post-apocalyptic series premiered in April 2025. Now that season 2 has ended, in a shocking cliffhanger, no less, anticipation for the third season of the series is at an all-time high.

There are some teasers about what the next chapter will be about and whose POV will be featured, but the events of The Last of Us season 2 finale have also set the stage for what comes next, especially for Ellie. Played by Bella Ramsey, Ellie's quest to avenge Joel's (Pedro Pascal) death has been the main premise of the season.

The Last of Us season 2 has been a vicious cycle of revenge, and Ellie is in the middle of it, or she could end the cycle for good. It started with Joel wiping out the Fireflies, to Abby (Kaitlyn Dever) killing Joel, the man who killed his father, as revealed in the finale, which progressed into Ellie trying to hunt Abby.

Ellie's decisions throughout her warpath against Abby in the finale set up her story for The Last of Us season 3.

Disclaimer: This article may contain some spoilers for The Last of Us season 2. Reader's discretion is advised.

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What happened to Ellie in the season 2 finale that could change her arc in The Last of Us season 3?

Ellie started The Last of Us season 2 with one goal: find Abby and her crew in Seattle and make her pay for killing Joel. In the season 2 finale, her search for vengeance reaches a harrowing climax. Ellie returns from hunting down and torturing Nora to make her talk.

Meanwhile, Dina doesn't seem to have any remorse for the violence, telling Ellie that maybe Nora deserved it. However, Ellie isn't so certain anymore, answering her friend, "Maybe she didn't." Then comes the revelation of why Abby was hell-bent on killing Joel. It turns out that Joel started the chain of revenge after he killed Abby's father, which rattles Dina.

They all decide to go home, but first, they have to find Joel's baby brother, Tommy (Gabriel Luna). However, in the middle of Ellie and Jesse's (Young Marino) search for Tommy, she fully abandons the plan and goes rogue. She leaves Jesse to find and rescue Tommy while she goes to the nearby aquarium, thinking that Abby is holed up in there based on Nora's confession about a "wheel" and a "whale."

It's a selfish choice that she makes, something that Jesse didn't let slide. He tells Ellie, "Everything you do, you do for you," further revealing that he was one of the council members who voted against her mission for that reason. Instead of looking for Tommy, Ellie takes a detour to the aquarium, where she meets Abby's crew members, Owen and Mel.

The confrontation ends bloody, with Ellie shooting at Owen but also nicking Mel in the neck in the process. In a shocking turn of events, Mel's jacket falls open to reveal that she's pregnant. She's bleeding out and begs Ellie to cut the baby out of her before it's too late. However, without any training, Ellie couldn't do anything but sob over the traumatic scene. Mel dies, and so does the baby.

Shortly after, a commotion starts. Jesse is the first to go down after being taken out by an unseen assailant. Tommy has been hit as well, but he's alive when the credits roll. While it isn't Ellie who pulls the trigger, Jesse dies in part because of her. After Abby shoots Jesse, she defends her actions, telling Ellie, "He killed my friends."

Ellie corrects her, telling Abby that she killed her friends, not Jesse, but the damage is already done. Jesse, who has just learned that Dina is pregnant with the baby and has made Ellie swear that he can't die in Seattle, however, is collateral damage.

Killing the pregnant Mel has already shaken Ellie, and the guilt over Jesse's death is bound to cause even more trauma heading into The Last of Us season 3. All because she wants to avenge the man who is no longer present, she ends up sacrificing people who could have lived.

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What is The Last of Us season 3 going to be about?

The Last of Us season 3 is on its way, and it's expected to fill the void left by the cliffhanger of Ellie and Abby's face-off in the season 2 finale. However, there will be a shift in the perspective, with the main focus on Abby and her life. Still, based on the rest of The Last of Us Part 2 video game, which seasons 2 and 3 are based on, there's a major face-off waiting for Ellie and Abby in the end.

Despite earlier sentiments, with Ellie thinking that Nora may not have deserved what happened to her, Jesse's death and Tommy's injury in the finale will restart the revenge cycle. Like what Jesse tells Ellie before he dies, he knows Ellie would set the world on fire to save him. She's likely to do the same, even more, to avenge his death in The Last of Us season 3, like he did for Joel in season 2.

HBO has not released any specific plot details for The Last of Us season 3 yet. However, co-creator and showrunner Craig Mazin said in the finale press conference, per People, that The Last of Us season 3 will explore another side of the story:

"There is another side to this story that we have yet to really delve into. There's no question that Abby is the hero of her story."

Series star Isabela Merced also teased during an interview with Variety in May 2025 that Jesse's death will significantly impact Dina and Ellie's relationship. Mazin added that Ellie and Dina's relationship will be "the central relationship" for the upcoming The Last of Us season 3.

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The complete episodes of the first two seasons of The Last of Us are now streaming on Max.