The Last of Us Lives On: Naughty Dog Confirms Two New Projects
Two The Last of Us projects, zero mentions of the word “game.” Neil Druckmann is a master at saying a lot with very little, and that’s exactly how he closed out TLOU Day 2026.
In a late-night blog post during The Last of Us Day, the Naughty Dog boss officially announced two new projects in very early development, promising to expand the canon beyond Part I and Part II. But his wording—deliberately vague—never once mentions the format of these “stories worth telling.” Enough to make fans who dream of Part III (and those who dread it) equally nervous.
Image credit: Naughty Dog
An announcement that says everything… except the essentials
Read Druckmann’s statement again and look for the word “game.” It’s not there. The Naughty Dog boss talks about “projects,” “stories,” and “canon,” but never about a video game. That omission, coming from such a meticulous communicator, is no accident. “We have two very exciting new projects at a very early stage—we can’t say much for now,” he writes, adding that “both projects will expand the canon of The Last of Us beyond Part I and Part II.”
The Last of Us Day 2026 Ends With an Update From Neil Druckmann: https://t.co/Tpg0UbDKyc pic.twitter.com/OZRxhLqiOa
— (@thelastofus) date
The Last of Us hasn’t been limited to controllers for a long time. The franchise has branched out into an HBO series, comics, and even a stage play. It’s even crossing over into other PlayStation universes. Druckmann’s ambiguity isn’t just a stylistic flourish—it reflects a franchise that’s gone fully multimedia, where a “new canon project” could take just about any form.
The Last of Us Part III: the theory everyone wants to believe
Despite all the carefully maintained mystery, most fans are fixated on one scenario: The Last of Us Part III. Six years after Part II, the hunger for a sequel hasn’t faded. And Druckmann’s line—“we wouldn’t return to this world unless we had something meaningful to say”—is word-for-word the same philosophy that preceded the second game’s reveal. Among the theories circulating in the community:
- A Part III focused on new characters or continuing Ellie’s arc
- The resurrection of the standalone multiplayer game, after the official multiplayer mode was canceled
- A narrative project in a totally new format for the franchise
But Druckmann hasn’t confirmed any of that. The documentary Grounded II is described as the starting point for internal discussions about new stories, suggesting a creative process that’s still very much in flux. Jumping to a Part III conclusion is tempting, but way too soon.
Intergalactic pushes everything else to 2027 at the earliest
The other big news from the blog post is about Intergalactic, Naughty Dog’s next game. Revealed at The Game Awards almost two years ago, the title still hasn’t been shown in action. “The team is heads-down working on what’s shaping up to be Naughty Dog’s most ambitious game yet,” Druckmann explains, describing a “palpable electricity” in the studio. But he immediately adds: “We need to cook a little longer. We’ll stay quiet for the rest of the year. In 2027, that changes.”
With Intergalactic still taking up most of the studio’s resources, the two The Last of Us projects—described as “very early stage”—probably won’t see the light of day for several years. If Part III happens, a late PS5 release seems optimistic; the PS6 era looks much more likely. Naughty Dog is now juggling at least three major projects at once—a real balancing act for a studio used to putting all its energy into a single game.
By dropping just enough info to fuel speculation without promising anything concrete, Druckmann ensures The Last of Us will stay in the conversation for months to come. TLOU Day 2026 also raised $11,000 for AbleGamers—a sign that the community doesn’t need a Part III to stay engaged.
