The HBO adaptation of The Last of Us continues to command high viewership as it enters its second season, with new episodes premiering weekly. As the story deepens, fans are fixated on one major question: Does Joel, portrayed by Pedro Pascal, meet the same grim fate as he did in the video game?Why It MattersBased on the critically acclaimed video game series by Naughty Dog, The Last of Us closely follows the original narrative, which has led to speculation that Joel's controversial death in the second game may be depicted on-screen.Joel became a breakout figure for the franchise, both in the video games and in HBO's adaptation. His fate in the game provoked emotional backlash, and fans are bracing for a similarly intense moment in the show.HBO has chosen to split the narrative of the second game across multiple seasons.Does Joel Really Die in The Last of Us?In Season 2 of The Last of Us, the consequences of Joel's past actions come to a violent head. Previously, Joel (Pedro Pascal), saved Ellie (Bella Ramsey) from a fatal surgery intended to develop a cure for the infection, killing 18 rebels and a doctor—who happened to be Abby's father.Seeking revenge, Abby (Kaitlyn Dever) and her friends train and travel to Jackson, Wyoming. While her group hesitates, Abby pushes forward and crosses paths with Joel during a patrol. Pretending to offer shelter, she lures him and Dina (Isabela Merced) to a remote lodge.Meanwhile, Jackson is attacked by a massive swarm of infected, including a towering variant that breaches the city's defenses. As chaos unfolds, Ellie and Jesse (Young Mazino) search for the missing patrol. Later, Abby stabs Joel in the neck, and Ellie witnesses the murder.The brutal act sets the stage for Ellie's quest for vengeance and redefines the emotional arc of the season.Does Joel Die in The Last of Us Video Game?Yes. Joel is violently killed in The Last of Us Part II, setting the tone for the game's darker and more morally complex storyline.According to Time, Abby's killing of Joel in The Last of Us Part II sparked intense backlash, as the game forced players to view the story from her perspective. The narrative shift—playing as both Abby and Ellie—was designed to build empathy and highlight the horrors of vengeance. While critically praised, the decision divided fans, with some expressing hostility toward Abby's character and even sending threats to her voice actor.How Does Joel Die in The Last of Us Video Game?In the game, Joel is captured by Abby and her group, who are seeking vengeance for the killing of Abby's father at Joel's hands in the first installment. She executes him with a golf club in front of Ellie—a scene that shocked fans and was heavily debated in the gaming community.Why Did They Kill Off Joel in The Last of Us?The first season of HBO's The Last of Us largely followed the plot of the game. The creators acknowledged that for the second season, the show would continue in the same way.Pascal has publicly acknowledged Joel's video game fate but kept quiet about whether it will occur the same way on screen."It's not like they said, 'Hey, we kill you at the beginning of season 2,'" Pascal told Entertainment Weekly about the death. "But it was always an understanding that it would stay true to the source material in a specific way and that the, let's say, practical and exclusive obligation would be for season 1. It was just a matter of how and when."The creators of The Last of Us, Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann, who also co-created the game franchise, told Variety that the death had to happen so early in the show to carry the rest of the plot. Because viewers knew of his death due to the game's popularity, there was no way to avoid the character's demise, and thus it was not worth drawing out."There's a danger of tormenting people," Mazin told Variety. "It's not what we want to do. If people know it's coming, they will start to feel tormented. And people who don't know it's coming are going to find out it's coming, because people are going to talk about the fact that it hasn't shown up yet. Our instinct was to make sure that when we did it, that it felt natural in the story and was not some meta-function of us wanting to upset people."Will Joel Come Back in The Last of Us?While Joel's death is final in the game's present timeline, he appears in several key flashback scenes. The HBO show is expected to follow suit. As Time reported, the showrunners intend to tell "the full scope of the story" over multiple seasons, which likely includes depicting Joel through Ellie's memories.What People Are SayingPedro Pascal, who plays Joel Miller in The Last of Us, told Entertainment Weekly: "I'm in active denial. I realize this more and more as I get older, I find myself slipping into denial that anything is over. I know that I'm forever bonded to so many members of the experience and just have to see them under different circumstances, but never will under the circumstances of playing Joel on The Last of Us. And, no, I don't spend a lot of time thinking about it because it makes me sad."Co-creator Neil Druckmann told Variety of the moment when Joel lifts his head after getting beaten in the second episode: "Talking about this, I'm just thinking, 'Oh man, I want him to get up.' Even as writers, we want Joel to get up. We love this character."Bella Ramsey, who plays Ellie in The Last of Us, told Entertainment Weekly: "I've never cried reading a piece of writing before, but I had such a gastral reaction to it. It's almost like we've played that dynamic, me and Pedro, for a year, and it feels like father-daughter in some way. I think my reaction to that being over was quite a gradual feeling. Also knowing that that would be the end of Pedro and us two working together in this capacity."What Happens NextThe second season of The Last of Us premiered on Sunday, April 13. New episodes drop on Sundays through Sunday, May 25, and viewers can watch the show on HBO or stream on Max.The show has already been renewed for a third season.