HBO announced today that The Last of Us has been officially renewed for Season 2. It comes after a premiere that drew 22 million domestic viewers and rapidly went viral on social media.
From game to series
Between July 2021 and June 2022, Alberta served as the location for filming The Last of Us, which is rumored to be the biggest television production in Canadian history.
The famous video game turned into Television Series which gathered a lot of praise from Rotten Tomatoes.
Produced jointly by Sony Pictures Television, PlayStation Productions, Naughty Dog, the Mighty Mint, and Word Games, it is the first HBO show based on a video game. The first season has nine episodes that were co-written by Mazin and Druckmann, who also authored and co-directed the original game.
In 2023, The Last of Us made its debut on January 15. The performances, script, production design, and soundtrack were lauded by critics, who also dubbed it the finest live-action video game adaptation.
The series debut attracted 4.7 million people on the first day across linear channels and HBO Max, which is the second-highest number for HBO since 2010, and over 22 million viewers in total over the course of twelve days. A second season of the show was ordered in January 2023.
Well deserved for the series!
After the news broke, executive producer and Naughty Dog co-president Neil Druckmann stated in a tweet (below) that the second season will be based on The Last of Us: Part 2 game, much like the first season was based on The Last of Us (later rebranded as Part 1).
Even though The Last of Us had just two episodes air, there were already rumors about a second season, lead by actor Bella Ramsey who stated that a renewal was probable provided viewership remained strong.
The network reportedly decided to lock in a second season after Episode 2 garnered 22% more viewers on its debut night than Episode 1 – the highest week two audience rise for any HBO original drama ever.
The fact that so many people have listened to and engaged with our rendition of Joel and Ellie’s journey “humbles, honors, and honestly overwhelms me,” said Druckmann.
“My already high hopes were surpassed by the partnership with Craig Mazin, our amazing cast, and crew, as well as HBO. With Season 2, we now have the wonderful pleasure of doing it once more! Thank you from everyone at Naughty Dog and PlayStation.
“I’m so thankful to Neil Druckmann and HBO for our cooperation, and I’m even more grateful to the millions of individuals who have joined us on this trip,” said fellow executive producer Craig Mazin.
As a supporter of the characters and the universe Neil and Naughty Dog built, I couldn’t be more eager to jump back in now that the public has given us the chance to continue.
In an effort to increase interest in HBO’s adaptation of The Last of Us, the first episode of the game was posted for free on YouTube prior to the announcement of Season 2.
Fans can watch how the narrative of Joel and Ellie continues (along with Nick Offerman’s Bill) in Episode 3 on January 29. The program has kept fairly loyal to the original PlayStation game, but it has also not been hesitant to alter things.
The film’s leading actors include Nico Parker as Sarah, Joel’s daughter, Gabriel Luna as Tommy, Merle Dandridge as Marlene, and Anna Torv as Tess, Joel’s smuggler partner.