In The Last of Us Part II, Abby Anderson stays alive because Ellie decides to spare her during their violent final confrontation on the beach in Santa Barbara. Overcoming her overwhelming desire for revenge, Ellie recognizes that killing Abby will not heal her trauma over Joel's death, allowing Abby and Lev to escape by boat.
The Santa Barbara Climax: How Abby Survives the Beach Battle
The climax of The Last of Us Part II brings Ellie Williams and Abby Anderson to a harrowing showdown in Santa Barbara, California. After leaving her peaceful farm life with Dina and baby JJ, Ellie tracks Abby down to a hostile faction known as the Rattlers. By the time Ellie discovers Abby, several months have passed since their brutal encounter in Seattle.
Abby is no longer the formidable, muscular soldier of the Washington Liberation Front (WLF). Having been captured by the Rattlers during her search for surviving Fireflies, Abby was subjected to months of forced labor and torture. Ellie finds her bound to a wooden pillar on the ocean shoreline, severely malnourished, physically emaciated, and near death alongside Lev.
- Ellie tracks Abby to Santa Barbara
- Frees Abby & Lev from Rattler pillars
- Forces knife fight at the boats
- Ellie overpowers Abby underwater
- Memory of Joel causes Ellie to release Abby
- Abby & Lev sail away
Initially, Ellie cuts Abby down from the pillar. Abby immediately moves to rescue Lev, carrying the unconscious boy toward two small sailboats anchored near the surf. There is no initial desire from Abby to fight; her sole focus has shifted entirely to keeping Lev alive. However, as Ellie prepares to board the adjacent boat, a PTSD flashback of Joel’s brutalized face strikes her. Driven by the internal belief that only Abby's death will resolve her haunting trauma, Ellie draws a knife and forces a reluctant Abby to fight by threatening to harm Lev.
The ensuing duel is agonizing and messy. Due to her severe physical depletion, Abby lacks the strength that once gave her an edge in hand-to-hand combat. Despite Ellie suffering a severe abdomen wound from her earlier encounter with a Rattler trap, Ellie gains the upper hand, forcing Abby into the shallow water, pinning her down, and drowning her. During the struggle, Abby bites off two of Ellie's fingers, but Ellie successfully submerges Abby's head beneath the surf.
As Abby's physical resistance weakens near the point of death, Ellie experiences a sudden, calm flash of memory: Joel sitting on his porch playing an acoustic guitar. This fleeting memory halts Ellie's grip. Shaken and sobbing, Ellie lets go of Abby's neck and allows her to surface. Ellie tells Abby to take Lev and leave, bringing an abrupt end to their deadly rivalry.
The Narrative and Psychological Reasons Ellie Spares Abby
Ellie's choice to spare Abby is the emotional core of The Last of Us Part II, resolving the central narrative exploration of grief, vengeance, and moral decay. Understanding why Abby stays alive requires analyzing Ellie's psychological state at the moment she holds Abby underwater.
1. The Memory of Forgiveness and Reconciliation
Throughout her journey, Ellie believes her overwhelming grief and panic attacks stem from Abby killing Joel. However, the flashback on the beach reveals the deeper root of Ellie's trauma: unresolved guilt over her own relationship with Joel.
The night before Joel was killed in Jackson, Ellie visited him on his porch. For years, she had isolated Joel after discovering he had lied about the Firefly hospital in Salt Lake City, preventing her immune blood from being used to develop a vaccine. In that final conversation, Ellie told Joel that while she did not think she could ever forgive him for what he did, she would "like to try."
When Ellie holds Abby underwater, the memory that flashes across her mind is not Joel’s bloodied body, but Joel sitting peacefully with his guitar on that porch. Ellie realizes that killing Abby will not restore the lost time with Joel, nor will it erase her regret over how many years she spent pushing him away. Sparing Abby is Ellie’s first genuine step toward processing her grief rather than projecting it outward through violence.
2. Recognizing the Parallel Between Joel and Lev
By forcing Abby into the fight, Ellie threatens Lev—an innocent, unconscious child reliant on Abby for survival. As Ellie watches Abby desperately carry Lev to the boat, she sees a direct reflection of her own past with Joel.
Joel committed extreme acts of violence to protect Ellie across the American wasteland. Similarly, Abby abandoned her allegiance to the WLF and sacrificed her safety to protect Lev, a exiled Seraphite youth. If Ellie kills Abby, she leaves Lev to perish alone on the beach or forces Lev into the same cycle of orphanhood and revenge that fueled Ellie and Abby. By letting Abby live, Ellie breaks the chain of generational retaliation.
3. The Futility of Vengeance
By the end of the fight on the beach, both women have lost almost everything to their mutual pursuit of vengeance:
- Abby lost her father (Dr. Jerry Anderson), her romantic partner (Owen), her close friends (Mel, Manny, Nora), and her physical strength.
- Ellie lost Joel, her surrogate father figure (Jesse), her partner (Dina), her stepson (JJ), her ability to play the guitar properly due to lost fingers, and her peace of mind.
Ellie recognizes that killing a malnourished, beaten woman who refuses to fight back yields no catharsis. The act of murder would not bring peace; it would only finalize Ellie’s total loss of her own humanity.
Abby's Character Arc: From Antagonist to Protector
Abby’s survival is equally significant because of her dramatic character arc across the story. Introduced as the antagonist who executes Joel Miller early in the game, Abby’s trajectory mirrors Joel’s original arc from the first game.
- Dr. Jerry Anderson Killed (Salt Lake City)
- Abby Seeks Revenge against Joel (Jackson, Wyoming)
- Abby Kills Joel
- Suffers Emptiness & Guilt
- Meets Lev & Yara (Seattle)
- Reclaims Purpose through Protection
- Spares Ellie in Theater
- Escapes WLF Conflict
- Captured in Santa Barbara
- Freed by Ellie & Sails to Catalina Island
The Salt Lake City Backstory
Abby's motivation stems from the climax of the original The Last of Us. Her father, Dr. Jerry Anderson, was the head Firefly surgeon capable of synthesizing a cure from Ellie's brain tissue. When Joel breached the Saint Mary's Hospital to save Ellie, he killed Dr. Anderson. This loss consumed Abby for four years, driving her to undergo rigorous physical training and track Joel to Jackson, Wyoming.
The Failure of Revenge
After killing Joel, Abby does not experience peace. Instead, she is plagued by recurring nightmares of her father's dead body in the hospital corridor. Her obsession strains her relationship with Owen Moore and leaves her feeling hollow. Her narrative arc demonstrates that achieving revenge fails to cure traumatic grief.
Redemption Through Lev and Yara
Abby's emotional recovery begins when she meets Yara and Lev, two siblings fleeing the religious cult known as the Seraphites (or "Scars"). Despite the deep-seated hatred between the WLF and the Seraphites, Abby chooses to risk her life to secure medical supplies for Yara's amputated arm.
Caring for Lev gives Abby a constructive purpose. When Tommy and Ellie kill Abby’s friends in Seattle, Abby tracks Ellie to the theater, driven once again by vengeance. However, after beating Ellie and securing control over Dina, Lev intervenes, pleading with Abby to stop. Abby listens to Lev, spares Ellie and Dina, and leaves Seattle to start a new life.
Where Does Abby Go After Surviving?
After Ellie releases her on the beach, Abby boards the small sailboat with Lev and pushes off into the Pacific Ocean. While the main story ends with Ellie returning to an empty farmhouse, subtle in-game evidence confirms where Abby goes next.
Before being captured by the Rattlers, Abby and Lev traveled to Santa Barbara specifically to track down rumored remnants of the Fireflies. In an abandoned house at 2424 Constance Place, Abby successfully established radio contact with a Firefly base. The radio operator confirmed that the Fireflies were regrouping and instructed her to head to Catalina Island, located off the coast of Southern California, near the historic Catalina Casino.
- Santa Barbara Beach (Sailboat)
- Catalina Island
- Reassembled Firefly Base
Upon completing The Last of Us Part II, the game's main menu screen dynamically changes. Prior to completing the game, the title screen features a dark, rain-swept boat drifting in foggy water. After the credits roll, the title screen updates to reveal a bright, sunlit beach with the same sailboat safely anchored near the shore, with the recognizable silhouette of the Catalina Casino in the background.
This visual detail confirms that Abby and Lev successfully crossed the channel, reached Catalina Island, and reunited with the reformed Firefly faction.
Comparing Ellie and Abby’s Narrative Paths
The narrative structure of The Last of Us Part II intentionally contrasts Ellie and Abby to highlight how trauma shapes their actions. The table below outlines key parallels between both characters throughout the game.
| Character Dimension | Ellie Williams | Abby Anderson |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Catalyst | Death of Joel Miller (surrogate father) | Death of Dr. Jerry Anderson (biological father) |
| Initial Quest | Revenge against Abby in Seattle & Santa Barbara | Revenge against Joel in Jackson |
| Primary Companion | Dina (Seattle), Tommy (guidance) | Lev (formerly Yara and Owen) |
| Moral Low Point | Torturing Nora, killing pregnant Mel | Executing Joel, threatening pregnant Dina |
| Turning Point | Flashback of Joel on the porch at Santa Barbara | Lev pleading for mercy at the Seattle theater |
| Physical Cost | Severed fingers, severe stab/slashing wounds, PTSD | Extreme emaciation, loss of muscle mass, torture marks |
| Final Resolution | Leaves revenge behind; loses family; achieves internal closure | Survives beach encounter; reaches Catalina Island Fireflies with Lev |
Public and Critical Reception of Abby's Survival
The decision to keep Abby alive proved to be one of the most widely discussed story choices in modern video game history. When plot leaks surfaced prior to the game's June 2020 release, sections of the audience expressed anger over Joel’s death and the requirement to play as his killer for roughly half the campaign.
However, following the game's release, critical analysis from publications like Polygon and Eurogamer praised Naughty Dog and creative director Neil Druckmann for committing to an uncompromising narrative structure. By forcing players to step into Abby's perspective, the game demanded that players confront their own biases and capacity for empathy.
- 2020 Game Release
- Narrative Controversy & Leaks
- Critical Acclaim for Perspective Shift
- Adaptation in HBO Series
Abby's survival preserves one of the franchise's most complex characters for future storytelling. Voice actor Laura Bailey received widespread acclaim for her performance, winning Best Performance at The Game Awards 2020. With the success of HBO’s television adaptation of The Last of Us, Abby's character arc—and her survival—remains a central pillar of the franchise's legacy.
Frequently Asked Questions About Abby in The Last of Us
Does Ellie kill Abby at the end of The Last of Us Part II?
No, Ellie does not kill Abby. Although Ellie overpowers Abby on the beach in Santa Barbara and holds her underwater, a flashback of Joel prompts Ellie to stop. Ellie releases Abby, allowing her to board a sailboat and escape with Lev.
Why didn't Abby kill Ellie in the Seattle theater?
Abby spared Ellie and Dina in the theater because Lev intervened. After Abby defeated Ellie and was on the verge of killing a pregnant Dina, Lev looked at Abby and shook his head. Recognizing that killing them would destroy the humanity she had regained while protecting Lev, Abby chose to let them live.
Did Abby actually reach the Fireflies on Catalina Island?
Yes. After completing the game, the main menu background changes to show Abby’s sailboat pushed ashore on a sunlit beach with the Catalina Casino in the distance. This confirms that Abby and Lev successfully reached the regrouped Fireflies on Catalina Island.
Why was Abby so thin during the final chapter in Santa Barbara?
Abby lost her signature muscular build because she was captured by the Rattlers, a tyrannical faction operating in Santa Barbara. The Rattlers kept their prisoners in slave labor camps under brutal conditions, subjecting them to severe malnutrition, overwork, and physical punishment over several months.
Will Abby appear in future The Last of Us projects?
While Naughty Dog has not officially announced a third main entry in the game series, Abby remains alive in canon, making a future appearance theoretically possible. Additionally, her character arc is a primary focal point in the multi-season HBO television adaptation of The Last of Us Part II.
Key Takeaways on Abby’s Survival
Abby Anderson staying alive in The Last of Us Part II is essential to the game's broader thematic narrative. Her survival signifies that mercy is possible even after devastating cycles of violence.
By sparing Abby, Ellie breaks the chain of revenge that claimed Joel, Jesse, Owen, Mel, and countless others. Rather than ending in total destruction, the story concludes with both women surviving their physical and emotional ordeals: Ellie returns to seek personal healing, while Abby finds a renewed sense of purpose alongside Lev among the Fireflies.
