Neil Druckmann, head of the PlayStation studio Naughty Dog and co-creator of The Last of Us, is stepping away from the HBO show based on the 2013 game and its 2020 sequel to focus his work on Naughty Dog's next game. On Instagram, the studio published the following statement from Druckmann:

The Naughty Dog studio head and now-former producer on the HBO adaptation will step away from the series to focus on the game developer's future projects.

The Last of Us HBO's third and fourth seasons won't have Neil Druckmann at the wheel, it's been revealed, nor will it have Halley Gross. Druckmann co-created the original The Last of Us game, and directed The Last of Us Part 2 (which Gross also co-wrote).