A major plot point that could shape a potential The Last of Us future story has been revealed by a former Naughty Dog developer. Speaking via the KiwiTalkz podcast, ex-Naughty Dog lighting artist Gabriel Betancourt discussed a surprising conversation he once had with franchise creator Neil Druckmann.

During the exchange, Druckmann reportedly revealed that the main character, Ellie, was just one part of a "congregation" of people with immunity to the cordyceps infection. This revelation challenges the foundation of the first game, where Ellie's seemingly unique immunity drove the central conflict.

A Congregation of Immune Survivors in The Last of Us

The weight of the franchise relies heavily on the tension of Joel’s choice at the end of the first game. He was forced to choose between saving Ellie or saving humanity—a decision that continues to reverberate through The Last of Us Part 2. Last year, Druckmann even confirmed that a cure for humanity would have been possible had Joel chosen differently.

However, Betancourt’s insight suggests that Ellie is far less unique than the characters (or the players) believed. He recalled how he once viewed her immunity as the singular pillar of the narrative.

"I felt like the pillar of the story was Ellie being the only person with the cure," Betancourt said. "And so protecting her, and making sure she got to where she needs to go to save humanity — because without the cure life is hopeless — that's what created the gravity of that world."

Betancourt noted that Druckmann eventually corrected this perspective, stating: "Yeah, but several people are immune. There's a place, there's a whole congregation of that kind of person, and what I want to do is to tell a more sophisticated story. I want to tell a story with multiple characters and kind of expand on that."

Divided Fanbases and Narrative Stakes

While Betancourt departed Naughty Dog over a decade ago following his work on The Last of Us: Left Behind, the news has reignited intense debate among fans. Many argue that diluting Ellie's status as the "only" immune person undermines the emotional impact of the series.

Reddit user suffywuffy expressed strong opposition to this direction, noting how it changes the stakes:

  • The "messiah" status of Ellie is diminished.
  • Joel's original decision loses some of its weight.
  • The fear of a cure being "recreated" by bad actors increases.

"Part of what makes Joel's [decision] so impactful in the game is that Ellie is that 1 in 7 billion messiah type figure," suffywuffy wrote. They also noted a dislike for how HBO’s series explained her immunity, suggesting it made her status something that could be replicated by someone "depraved/desperate enough."

For context, the HBO adaptation explained that Ellie received a small amount of the infection from her mother while in the womb, providing just enough resistance to prevent reinfection without killing her.

The Road Ahead for Naughty Dog

Despite the shift in scale, Druckmann has hinted that the saga is far from over. Recently, he shared original sketches from 2003 for a game pitch about a man and his surrogate daughter, noting that "the road ahead" still contains more stops.

The developer has never ruled out a third chapter. In the Grounded 2: Making The Last of Us Part 2 documentary, Druckmann even stated he feels "there's one more chapter to this story." An encounter with a "congregation" of survivors would certainly provide the scale needed for such a conclusion.

In the meantime, Naughty Dog is focused on new frontiers. The studio is currently developing Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, directed by Druckmann, alongside a second unnamed project directed by Shaun Escayg, who previously led Uncharted: The Lost Legacy.