Merced joins a growing list of actors confirmed for season 2 of the show, including Kaitlyn Dever as Abby and Young Mazino as Jesse.
Mazino is nominated for an award in this year's Emmys for his role as Paul Cho in the Netflix series Beef.
The 27-year old actress is best known for her roles in Justified, Last Man Standing, and Dopesick, among others.
The series was nominated for 19 awards at the Creative Arts Emmys, and is also nominated for an additional 5 at the Primetime Emmys.
Kaitlyn Dever, best known for her roles in Unbelievable and Dopesick (among others), is reportedly in talks to play Abby.
Production on the show's second season, which was officially greenlit earlier this year, will begin in early 2024.
As per Bella Ramsey, who plays Ellie on the show, shooting for the second season will begin at the end of this year.
Showrunners Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann confirm The Last of Us Part 2's story will be told over multiple seasons.
After an excellent start for the show's first two episodes, HBO has officially greenlit it for a second season.
The actor who plays Ellie in the HBO series says a second season is likely to happen, even though it hasn't been officially greenlit yet.
The series' third episode, titled "Long Long Time", will premiere on Sunday, and is set to have a runtime of close to 80 minutes.
The Last of Us enjoys the biggest ever second week growth for an original HBO series to date.
The TV adaptation of Naughty Dog's first title is the highest premiere for a new HBO series since Boardwalk Empire in 2010.
HBO's adaptation of The Last of Us premiered earlier this week, and has eight more episodes left in its first season.
Created by game director Neil Druckmann and Craig Mazin, the TV adaptation of the PlayStation classic has garnered critical acclaim.
HBO's adaptation of the seminal PlayStation hit, which premieres in less than a week, has garnered positive reviews from critics.
"The fact that they kept it so grounded, and really made you feel – I had never experienced anything like it, and I’ve been playing video games since 1977," Craig Mazin says.
The TV series premieres on January 15th, 2023, for HBO Max and features Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey as leads, Joel and Ellie.
Naughty Dog, Sony, and HBO have officially confirmed that HBO's adaptation of The Last of Us will premiere on January 15.
The series' official HBO page mentions a January 15 premier date, although HBO or Sony have yet to make an official announcement.