HBO’s The Last of Us recently concluded its second season with a dramatic cliffhanger. Naturally, viewers are eager to see what happens next, and specifically how Abby’s story unfolds.

Actress Kaitlyn Dever, who plays Abby, has now teased Season 3, saying she doesn’t know much but understands that it’s “crazier” than Season 2. Dever also discussed one of the show’s most memorable and intense sequences, including the context surrounding it of losing her mother just before filming.

This story contains major spoilers.

In Episode 2 of Season 2, Abby kills Joel (Pedro Pascal) with a golf club. It’s a brutal and bloody scene, and one that elicited plenty of strong reactions from viewers. Dever said she checked the online discourse after the episode aired and found that the reaction was “more positive” than she thought it would be.

“I kill everyone’s favorite character, the love of everyone’s life,” she said in an interview with The Los Angeles Times. “I’d never been part of anything this massive before. Like, the whole world is watching this. I had no idea what to expect.”

When The Last of Us: Part II game came out, people had very strong reactions to Joel’s death. Laura Bailey, who played Abby in the game, received death threats and other abuse.

Dever filmed this pivotal scene just four days after attending her mother’s funeral. Dever said when she watched the episode as it aired, it was like seeing it for the first time since she was dealing with the grief of losing her mother.

“It’s all a blur, and it felt like I got to experience it as a first-time viewer. I’d see things and go, ‘Oh, yeah.’ Grief does a really interesting thing with your brain. It messes with your memory,” she said.

Dever said she was “terrified” at the thought of going back to work after her mother passed away, saying she couldn’t imagine continuing. But she said her mother was so excited for her that she was playing such a major role on a TV series, and that after she passed away, Dever realized “there’s no part of me that couldn’t not do this.” Dever said she came back to work to “do it for her,” referring to her mother.

“My dad really encouraged me. I really was terrified. And he was like, ‘You got this. Mom was so excited that you got to be in this show.’ And luckily, the crew was so understanding and supportive. Everyone took care of me,” she said.

“Crazier” Season 3

Also in the interview, Dever talked about what she anticipates will be a “crazier” third season of The Last of Us.

“Craig [Mazin] hasn’t talked to me about what he’s doing. All he said to me was, ‘Just get ready for what’s to come because it’s going to be crazier,'” she said. “He always said he wanted to make Season 2 bigger than Season 1, and he said Season 3 is going to be even bigger. I’m like, ‘OK. I’ll be ready.'”

Dever also said she agreed with the interviewer who suggested it would be fun to see a flashback showing scenes with Abby and her father. “That’s a really good idea,” Dever said. “I hope we get to do something like that.”

“We don’t know what Craig’s plans are. He has been playing with dynamics,” Dever said.

The Last of Us Season 3 is officially on the way, but there is no word yet on when it might be released. A fourth season after that is “essential” to close out the series, Mazin has said.

No new The Last of Us games have been announced, but Naughty Dog is working on Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet and at least one other game. If you need more The Last of Us right now, you can spend $2,800 on a Taylor guitar replica of Ellie’s.

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