The live-action series adaptation of Sony’s The Last of Us drew big numbers on HBO with 4.7 million viewers watching the premiere this past Sunday making it the second biggest debut on the network since Boardwalk Empire launched in 2010, according to Deadline.
Ahead of the video game adaption at the number 1 debut spot was House of the Dragon which had more than double the viewers at 9.986 million viewers – that’s the power of that fandom – when the Game of Thrones spinoff premiered in late August of last year. HBO says it expects The Last of Us‘ per episode viewership to grow from the premiere as the Network says the first episode represents “20%-40% of the show’s total gross audience per episode.” Seeing all the buzz following the premiere it is hard to disagree with them on that.
“We are thrilled to see fans of the series and game alike experience this iconic story in a new way, and we extend our gratitude to them for helping to make it a success,” Congratulations to Craig, Neil and the brilliant cast and crew who worked tirelessly to bring this show to life. We look forward to fans around the world enjoying the rest of the season,” HBO & HBO Max Content Chairman and CEO, Casey Bloys said in a statement.
HBO’s The Last of Us is based on the 2013 PlayStation exclusive game of the same name, it is written and executive produced by Craig Mazin and one of the game’s directors Neil Druckmann in collaboration with Sony Pictures Television, PlayStation Productions, Word Games, The Mighty Mint, and Naughty Dog. The series stars Pedro Pascal, Bella Ramsey, Gabriel Luna, Anna Torv, Nico Parker, Murray Bartlett and Nick Offerman as well as Melanie Lynskey, Storm Reid, Merle Dandridge, Jeffrey Pierce, Lamar Johnson, Keivonn Woodard, Graham Greene, Elaine Miles, Ashley Johnson and Troy Baker.
“Our focus was simply to make the best possible adaptation of this beloved story for as big an audience as we could. We are overjoyed to see how many fans, both old and new, have welcomed The Last of Us into their homes and their hearts,” said Mazin and Druckmann said in a joint statement.
HBO’s The Last of Us has only just kicked off and is set to continue with a brand new episode this Sunday until the season finale on March 12th, we’ll have to wait how the show plays out and if a season 2 is in the cards or not.
