When news broke that Naughty Dog’ beloved The Last of Us franchise was being turned into a TV show, fans were understandably skeptical. Many great video games have unsuccessfully tried to make the switch to TV/ movies, so some thought The Last of Us would be the next on the list of failed attempts. To HBO’s credit, though, the reality has turned out very differently, and the show’s been extremely well-received by both critics and fans. With season 2 looming, and season 3 already confirmed, the show may eventually find itself overtaking the games in terms of the narrative. Should this happen, this could greatly impact the plot of any potential TLOU Part 3.

It’s been four years now since the release of The Last of Us Part 2. The conclusion of that game appeared to bring the curtain down on protagonist Ellie’s story arc, even if it left various plot threads precariously dangling. Many feel that TLOU Part 3 is inevitable, but developer Naughty Dog has stopped short of confirming this. If it does happen, it isn’t known what the plot would entail, or if Ellie would even feature in it at all. Part 3‘s story could end up being directly influenced by what happens in the show, though, once Part 2‘s in-game story has been caught up on screen.

The Last of Us Part 3 May be Influenced by the TV Series

Those wanting to see the pitfalls of a TV show catching up and overtaking its source material should look no further than another of HBO’s shows, Game of Thrones. The high-fantasy drama was a ratings juggernaut during its run and is widely regarded as among the greatest shows ever. Following George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire book series extremely closely, it featured excellent acting, impactful action scenes, and intelligent dialogue. When the show overtook Martin’s books from Season 5 onward, though, the quality noticeably dropped. By the end of its eighth and final season, many felt the show had become a messy, unstructured shadow of its former self, capped off by a weak finale that left many scratching their heads.

The Last of Us Part 2 is a huge game and it covers a vast amount of narrative ground, which gives season 2 of the show plenty of room to stretch its legs. Show creator Neil Druckmann has confirmed the season is only seven episodes long, and the plot of Part 2 will likely spill over into Season 3. In or around Season 3, then, it’s safe to assume Druckmann will run out of plot material to work with from the games, meaning the show will veer into uncharted territory.

How The Last of Us TV Show Could Inspire the Third Game

Season 1 of the TV show stuck pretty closely to the events of the first game, even replicating some scenes shot for shot. While several elements were expanded upon, like the character of Bill and his partner Frank, the key plot points closely mirrored their source material. There’s no reason to think this won’t continue for Season 2, but given the convoluted timelines of Part 2, it remains to be seen exactly how that will play out on screen. There’s no timescale attached to any potential The Last of Us Part 3. Naughty Dog has several projects in active development, but none of these have been revealed yet, and one could likely be TLOU Part 3.

There’s no doubt that the TV show and video game series are closely linked from a narrative perspective, so it’s difficult to imagine them deviating from each other at any stage, regardless of when. What happens first between TLOU Part 3 release, and the show catching up with the plot, remains to be seen, but whichever does come first, it is highly likely that will have a knock-on effect on the other. With Druckmann likely at the helm for both projects, it should be pretty easy to attain a level of consistency across both, further appeasing fans.