The journey of Joel and Ellie continues Sunday evening with the premiere of “The Last of Us” Season 2 on HBO and Max.
The second season of the video game adaptation takes place five years after the events of the Season 1 finale. Audiences will remember we last saw Joel make the difficult decision to stop the Fireflies from performing surgery on Ellie, preventing the group from using her immunity to make a vaccine in the hopes of saving humanity from the Cordyceps virus that has transformed the world into a zombie-filled wasteland.
Season 2, which follows the events of the video game’s 2020 sequel “The Last of Us: Part II,” will see the effects of Joel’s decision play out as he and Ellie are drawn into a conflict with both each other and a world that’s even more dangerous and unpredictable than the one they left. The season will be seven episodes long.
Below is a full timeline of the Joel and Ellie’s journey in the HBO adaptation through Season 2, Episode 1. This timeline will be updated, so check back for updates.
September 2003
A woman is infected with the Cordyceps brain infection in Jakarta and attacks four people. 14 people go missing following this incident.A day later, mycologist Ratina Pertiwi is brought in and suggests bombing the city to slow the spread.
On September 26, Joel Miller celebrates his 36th birthday. A day later, he and his daughter Sarah, as well as his brother Tommy, flee Austin as the Cordyceps infection outbreak reaches critical mass. But Sarah dies in Joel’s arms when she is killed by a soldier.
2009
Anna Williams gives birth to Ellie after being bitten by an infected during delivery. The attack results in Ellie being given immunity to the infection.
September 2023
Ellie is living in a FEDRA military school in Boston. Her ex-roomate Riley, who left school to join the Fireflies, returns and convinces Ellie to sneak out for one night before she has to leave. The pair end up exploring Liberty Gardens mall, where they are ultimately attacked by an infected. Though Riley ends up dying, Ellie realizes she’s immune from the infection.
Three weeks later, Joel and his partner Tess are tasked by Marlene with taking Ellie to the Fireflies, who are dead when they reach the extraction point. Tess proceeds to sacrifice herself so that Ellie and Joel can escape an infected horde.
Along their journey, Ellie and Joel meet brothers Sam and Henry in Kansas City. After teaming up to escape a resistance group, Sam is bitten by an infected and turns prompting Henry to kill his brother and himself.
Winter 2023
Joel and Ellie arrive at Tommy’s settlement in Jackson, Wyoming. Though Joel originally plans to dump Ellie on Tommy, he changes his mind and brings her to a Firefly base at the University of Eastern Colorado. However, the base is ambushed by survivors and Joel is injured in the attack.
Ellie comes across two survivors David and James, who are revealed to be hunting for her and Joel. After being captured, she manages to kill David and James and escape and is found by a recovered Joel.
Spring 2024
Ellie and Joel arrive at St. Mary’s Hospital in Salt Lake City, Utah, where they reconnect with Marlene and the Fireflies. Ellie is prepped for a surgery that would kill her to develop a cure, prompting Joel to kill Marlene and other Fireflies to save her and escape.
Three days after their departure, Abby and her fellow Fireflies are burying those who were killed by Joel and discuss going after him.
Winter 2028
Ellie and Joel are permanently living in Jackson after being welcomed in by Tommy and his wife Maria.
Ellie, who is angry with Joel, has made new friends, Dina and Jesse. Meanwhile, Joel is in therapy with Gail and is trying to communicate with Ellie, who is barely speaking with him.
Their feud comes to a head during a New Year’s Eve dance, when Ellie and Dina kiss each other and are confronted by another Jackson resident, Seth. Joel gets into a physical altercation with Seth, but is subsequently yelled at by Ellie for getting involved.
That night, Abby and her crew from Salt Lake arrive just outside the settlement in Jackson.
New episodes of “The Last of Us” air every Sunday at 9 p.m. ET on HBO and stream on Max.
