The brand new trailer for season 2 of “The Last of Us” has shuffled its way online, promising a much cheerier, all-around nicer experience than the show’s heartbreaking debut. Just kidding. We’re absolutely on course for another incredible mix of terror and tear-jerking moments, this time with a brand-new character thrown into the mix.

Following the events of last season, which ended with Joel (Pedro Pascal) finding a new reason to live at the end of the world with Ellie (Bella Ramsay), season 2 shifts the focus to the girl he saved, who still has a secret that could save mankind. The battle for survival is still raging on, though, and besides infected and nightmarish Clickers at risk of sending what’s left of humanity to extinction, a stranger with a harrowing past arrives in the form of the highly-controversial character Abby, played by “No One Will Save You” and “Apple Cider Vinegar” star Kaitlyn Dever.

Going into any detail regarding this new arrival would ruin the jaw-dropping events that fans of the original and hugely beloved video game franchise are prepped for. If you wept over last season’s “Long, Long Time” episode, you might struggle to keep it together when she wanders into town. Don’t say we didn’t warn you.

The trailer for “The Last of Us” season 2 sees Joel teaching his nephew Benjamin (who wasn’t in the games) about the world, including the “monsters” outside the fence. Of course, one of the major themes of the series is that the clickers, bloaters, and other mutated people infected by the cordyceps virus aren’t the only monsters around. Frequently, the biggest threat comes from people who are uninfected but desperate for survival — or out for revenge.

One of the most pivotal characters making a debut in season 2 is Kaitlyn Dever’s Abby, who was one of the main playable characters in “The Last of Us Part II.” Speaking during a panel at SXSW, where the trailer was first unveiled, Craig Mazin explained that Dever had been “within ‘The Last of Us’ DNA anyway” because, back when game studio Naughty Dog was first developing a movie based on the series, they were speaking to her about potentially starring as Ellie. 

Though Dever had aged out of the Ellie role by the time the TV show got rolling, season 2 presented an opportunity to cast her as one of the most important characters from the games. Needless to say, it’s a challenging role, but Dever’s track record promises she’s more than up to task.

“The Last of Us” season 2 premieres April 13, 2025, on HBO.