The Last of Us Part 2 Video Game Ending Explained: Ellie’s Tragic Fate, Abby’s Escape, Dina’s Disappearance, and more 

The Last of Us season 2 has ended, and the finale left viewers with a brutal cliffhanger. While season 3 has been confirmed, viewers can’t help but wonder if Ellie will survive. Moreover, after Jesse’s brutal death, fans are wondering if Tommy will survive. Also, with Dina and Ellie’s relationship not being as strong as it was when it began, fans of the show are also pondering how it will all end. 

While no one can say for sure how the show will end, but since it is an adaptation of the video game series with the same name, major plot points will probably be kept the same. After all, as of season 2, the show hasn’t deviated too much from major events like Joel’s death, Nora’s death, and more, which have been kept intact. 

So, what happens at the end of The Last of Us Part 2 video game? In this article, we will discuss all the major things that happen. 

Does Tommy die in The Last of Us Part 2?

No, Tommy does not die at the end of The Last of Us Part 2. He gets physically disabled when Abby shoots him on the shoulder during their confrontation at the theater, but he doesn’t die. In fact, he is the one who gives Ellie the information about where Abby is when she is living at the farmhouse with Dina and JJ. 

What Happens to Ellie and Abby’s Enmity in The Last of Us Part 2?

Ellie leaves Dina and JJ at their farmhouse and goes out in one last attempt to hunt Abby down and get closure for Joel’s death. She says that she can’t eat, can’t sleep, and basically can’t function normally. The game makes it clear that she is suffering from PTSD and is almost on the verge of ending her life. 

This hunt for Abby is seemingly her one last chance to somehow fix herself. So, she packs her bags and heads out to the last known location of Abby- California. She goes through Santa Barbara, mowing down anyone who stands in her path. 

Eventually, she reaches the base of the Rattlers, a mercenary group of slavers. There, she finds Abby and Lev captured and tied up. Ellie saves them, and they all have a chance to get out of there. However, Ellie just can’t let her revenge plan go. She remembers that she has to avenge Joel, so she begins a fight with Abby, who doesn’t want to fight at all. 

The big bad antagonist of the second part of the gaming series looks frail, exhausted, and on the verge of death. In fact, Ellie is the same as well. But her need for closure pushes her to attack a reluctant Abby. During the fight, Abby bites two of Ellie’s fingers off, and the two scuffle in the water. 

Ellie almost drowns Abby but she flashes back to Joel’s face at the porch of his house. This allows Ellie to let Abby go. Abby and Lev take one of the boats and escape out into the sea. It’s hinted at the end of the game that they are able to reach the rest of the fireflies. 

What Happens to Ellie at the end of The Last of Us?

Ellie returns home to the farm she shared with Dina and JJ. There she finds the house empty and her things neatly packed up and kept in a room. When she enters the room, she finds that there’s a guitar there as well- the same one that Joel gifted her. She tries to play it, but can’t because she has lost two of her fingers. 

With this, we are jolted to a flashback- Ellie confronts Joel on his porch about what he did to the fireflies all those years ago. Joel says, “If somehow the Lord gave me a second chance at that moment, I would do it all over again.”

Ellie is taken aback by this but realizes that Joel loves her unconditionally and like a daughter. However, she still thinks that her life would have mattered if a cure could have been made for humanity. Yet, Joel’s confession softens her. So, she says that even though she can’t forgive him for that, she would still like to try. 

They say their goodbyes and Ellie says that she will see him around. The flashback ends and Ellie puts down the guitar. The camera pans wide to the window beside which she was sitting, and we see Ellie walk into the wilderness. 

Why does Ellie let Abby live in The Last of Us Part 2?

Initially, we are led to believe that Ellie is hunting down Abby because she wants to avenge Joel’s death. While that was true, what she wanted even more was to free herself of the guilt of not spending more time with him. However, we don’t learn about this till the last flashback. Throughout the game, we are led to believe that Joel and Ellie had a rift in their relationship (regarding him lying about the fireflies) that they didn’t get to mend. 

So, there were things unspoken, and forgiveness wasn’t given. As such, players thought that Ellie went after Abby for robbing her of that chance of forgiveness. But the last flashback confirms that Ellie did forgive her father figure. So, she went on this quest to kill Abby and her group to essentially forgive herself for not patching things up with Joel sooner. 

Ellie lets Abby live when she sees a flashback of Joel and this prompts her to finally understand that killing Abby won’t bring Joel or the time she lost with him back. However, it’s important to understand that Ellie doesn’t forgive Abby for killing Joel. She just lets her go for her peace. 

What Happens to Dina in The Last of Us Part 2?

Dina gives Ellie an ultimatum at the farmhouse- if she leaves on her revenge quest again, that will be the end of their relationship. Ellie says it's her choice and then leaves the house. When she comes back after her quest in Santa Barbara, she finds that Dina has left with their son, JJ, and taken all the furniture. 

While it’s never confirmed where she has gone, there’s a note in the house that shows Jesse’s parents inviting Dina and Ellie to live with them. It’s assumed that she went there with her son. After all, it wouldn’t be smart of her to live on a huge farm with an infant all alone. 

Do Ellie and Dina get back Together in The Last of Us Part 2?

It isn’t explicitly confirmed whether Ellie and Dina get back together. However, she wears Dina’s bracelet when she returns to the farmhouse and looks way cleaner and fresher than she did in Santa Barbara. This has made many fans assume that they patched things up in Jackson before Ellie came to visit the farmhouse. 

However, others say that there’s no way Ellie would have known where Dina went in the months she was in Santa Barbara. So, her first instinct would be to check the farmhouse. As for the bracelet, Dina is never shown to want it back after giving it to Ellie. So, it's possible that it just stayed with Ellie. 

Regarding her looking clean, Ellie could have rested somewhere before coming to the farm. Narratively, there's an argument for why they wouldn't get back together- If she does get back with Dina, then their breakup wouldn’t mean anything, and Ellie wouldn’t realize that she lost the one good thing she had going on in her search for revenge. However, at this point, it's left to fan's interpretation regarding the status of their relationship. 

Will There be a The Last of Us Part 3?

At the time of writing, there’s no concrete confirmation regarding The Last of Us Part 3. It’s not even confirmed if there will be one either. However, Neil Druckmann has said in the Sacred Shapes podcast that another part will be made once he gets a good story for it. He said, “If we were ever to come back to it, I want to make sure that it’s a story worthy of The Last Of Us. And I love that world, I love these characters. With the right opportunity, the right idea, I would totally jump at it.”