Neil Druckmann and Craig Mazin, the showrunners for The Last of Us Season 2, have officially confirmed the return of spores, which were notably absent from the first season.
The newest HBO trailer, featured below, hints at the inclusion of spores after their exclusion in Season 1. In one scene, Bella Ramsey's character Ellie observes an infected individual whose exhalation releases the fungal spores.
You can’t stop this.#TheLastOfUs returns April 13 on Max. pic.twitter.com/DH8UzAugIV
— Max (@StreamOnMax) March 8, 2025
Warning! The following contains spoilers for The Last of Us Season 1.