The Last Of Us Co-Creator Reveals How Season 2's Seraphite Island Scene Made It Into The Show

The Last of Us co-creator Neil Druckmann has revealed how season 2's Seraphite island scene made it into the show, and where its inspiration came from. During The Last of Us season 2 finale, Ellie (Bella Ramsey) ends up washing ashore on an island while trying to get to the aquarium to find Abby (Kaitlyn Dever). However, she ends up getting captured by a group of Seraphites who begin to hang her, intent on killing her. Luckily, sounds from the WLF's attack on the group have them leave her, where she gets back in her boat and continues her journey.

ScreenRant was in attendance at a The Last of Us season 2 finale press conference, where Druckmann explained where the idea for the Seraphite island scene came from. He revealed the scene was originally envisioned for the video game source material, The Last of Us Part II, but was cut. They managed to fit it into the TV show, though, offering an exclusive scene not in the games. Check out what Druckmann had to say below:

Neil Druckmann: I will, just to add to that, because, you know, sometimes in adding something that was cut from the game requires you to remove something that was in the game. So, here that sequence where Ellie like drifts to the Seraphite Island and almost gets lynched herself was something we used to have in the game and cut it for just production pacing purposes. And then now- now we had like three horrible things in a row, we had like that sequence, Alice and then Mel. And in our conversation, we're like this, probably one, one too many.

What The Seraphite Island Scene Means For The Last Of Us Adaptation

An Original Scene That Offers More Context To The Larger Story

The Seraphite island scene gives Ellie an up-close encounter with the group. She almost died by their hands despite not being part of the WLF, with the militarized group's attack being the only reason she managed to survive. The scene not only offers a closer glimpse at the group, but also signifies the larger story at play that isn't being fully focused on just yet. This attack against their group will likely be explored more in The Last of Us season 3, when Abby takes the spotlight.

Including the scene in the TV show emphasizes how The Last of Us season 2's game changes help make the adaptation stand on its own. Providing a small yet significant look at the Seraphites on the island hints at events that will be more thoroughly explored later, while also emphasizing how they're still a threat. The specifics of their war against the WLF are likely going to be shown in the future, since the end of season 2 confirmed season 3 will be jumping back two days to explore the buildup to their big attack.

Our Take On The Last Of Us' Seraphite Island Scene

Giving New Clues To How They'll Be Explored In The Future

Although the scene between Ellie and the Seraphites was brief, it hinted at the show's possible deeper exploration of the group in the future. Since the island was originally supposed to be in the game, The Last of Us season 3 could include more original scenes, fleshing out what's going on in Seattle with even more detail. While it's unclear what this could mean for Abby's story, the sequence did indicate more context for the big battle will likely be shown in episodes to come.