The Last of Us executive producer Craig Mazin has shut down a potential return of Season 1 standouts Bill and Frank, in Season 2 or elsewhere.
Speaking to Deadline, Mazin addressed comments made by Bill actor Nick Offerman earlier in January, who joked about a return of the characters despite their deaths in Episode 3 of Season 1.
"It certainly has been pitched," Offerman said of a return. "I think we pitched a whole mini-series of a prequel of their lives before they met each other. It could be a musical. We’re not short on ideas. We’ll just we’ll see what Craig and [fellow executive producer Neil Druckmann] come up with."
But Mazin shut the idea down, making clear Bill and Frank won't return in flashbacks in The Last of Us Season 2, in a spin-off prequel, or elsewhere.
"I’m very proud of the episode we did with Bill and Frank,” he said. "There won’t be more Bill and Frank. Nick was joking about a prequel, that was kind of a joke. We are very happy with what we achieved."
Episode 3 of The Last of Us Season 1, the only one to include Bill and Frank, was considered a standout in what was already a well-received adaptation. "A masterfully told love story set in a world designed to leave them unwritten, Episode 3 of HBO’s The Last of Us is a sensational hour of television," IGN said in our 10/10 review.
The ball is rolling on The Last of Us Season 2, with Young Mazino, Isabela Merced, and Kaitlyn Dever joining the cast alongside Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey. It will premiere on HBO in 2025.
