Kaitlyn Dever Couldn't Watch 'The Last of Us' Finale: "I Don't Know How You Guys Did That"

After receiving 16 Emmy nominations for the second season of The Last of Us, the show's stars and creative team reflected on the emotional journey of the season during HBO Max's Nominee Celebration on Sunday. Pedro Pascal, Bella Ramsey, Kaitlyn Dever, Joe Pantoliano, and editor Timothy Good joined co-creators Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann at the event. A significant part of the discussion centered around the second episode of the season, which features Dever’s character, Abby, in a brutal act that leads to the death of Pascal’s main character, Joel.

Pascal shared his thoughts on the intensity of the moment, saying, “You're so inside of it that you really kind of lose sight of what it will mean when a TV audience experiences episode two of season two.” He also noted that since Joel dies in the original video game, he felt that “everyone knows this is gonna happen,” because he had been living with the story for so long. However, he emphasized that the cast and crew were focused on the narrative itself rather than the outcome, as they were deeply immersed in the characters’ journeys.

For many fans, the episode was a surprise and marked a pivotal shift in the series. After appearing in the first episode of season two, the second episode formally introduces Abby as the lead character for the upcoming third season. She is portrayed as a young woman seeking revenge after Joel killed her father.

Pascal praised Dever’s performance, saying, “Kaitlyn just came in, I had no doubt in my mind that she was going to knock it out of the park, because I'd seen her knock everything out of the park that she'd ever done up to that point.” He described the experience of working with her as a “dance” that allowed them to fully immerse themselves in the intense scene.

He also reflected on his relationship with Ramsey, whose character, Ellie, is not on good terms with Joel in season two. The two actors had been apart for a while between the first and second seasons, as they were physically separated for an extended period. When they reunited, their characters were still not together, which created a strange sense of pain that Pascal found difficult to process. “It was all kind of magical in a kind of painful way which helps you play it,” he said.

Mazin commended Dever for her performance in the violent scene, highlighting how she managed to convey deep emotion in such a short time. “I don't know how Kaitlyn was looking at Pedro, turned to look at golf clubs, turned back and a tear fell. I don't know how she did it,” he said. Dever, in turn, praised Pascal and Ramsey for their work in the scene where Ellie mourns over Joel’s lifeless body.

“I had to leave the room. I couldn't watch it. I don't know how you did it,” she told them.

Dever also spoke about her approach to portraying Abby, emphasizing the importance of focusing on her grief. “The most important thing to me when I was going to play Abby and doing the prep for her is just really focusing on her grief. I wanted people to be able to really see that and feel that and really understand just how deep her pain is.”

She added that there was a moment at the end of the scene where Abby kills Joel, and she felt that “there's a moment where she doesn't feel better and now she has to live with that.” Dever wanted to ensure that audiences could see the human side of Abby, showing that she is not just a villain but someone who has been driven by deep sorrow and obsession.