THE LAST OF US Gives HBO Its Second-Biggest Premiere Since 2010; New Full Season Trailer Released

THE LAST OF US Gives HBO Its Second-Biggest Premiere Since 2010; New Full Season Trailer Released

Though it didn't come close to House of the Dragon's massive 10 million viewers, the series premiere of The Last of Us gave HBO its highest viewing figures since Boardwalk Empire back in 2010...

By MarkCassidy - Jan 17, 2023 09:01 AM EST
Filed Under: Last of Us

After months of anticipation, HBO's small-screen adaptation of Naughty Dog's acclaimed survival horror video game, The Last of Us, premiered on Sunday (last night in The UK and Ireland), and the first episode was a massive hit.

The 90-minute premiere, "When You're Lost in the Darkness," drew in 4.7M viewers across linear HBO Max platforms on Sun night in the U.S., based on Nielsen and 1st party data.

Though this doesn't come close to House of the Dragon's near-10 million, it gives the network its second-biggest opening night audience since Boardwalk Empire (4.81 million) in 2010.

“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,” said Casey Bloys, chairman and CEO of HBO and HBO Max Content. “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 has also officially released the opening credits and a "Weeks Ahead" trailer, giving us an idea of what to expect from the rest of the season.

Check them out below. You'll also find our premiere recap here, and full season review here.

The Last of Us is set 20 years after modern civilization has been destroyed and centers on the relationship between Joel, a smuggler in this new world, and Ellie, a teenager who may be key to a cure for a deadly pandemic. Joel, a hardened survivor, is hired to smuggle the 14-year-old girl out of an oppressive quarantine zone. What starts as a small job soon becomes a brutal, heartbreaking journey as they traverse the U.S. and depend on each other for survival.

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bobevanz
bobevanz - 1/17/2023, 9:42 AM
Absolute perfection, even bringing back Gustavo for the game's music was icing on the cake.
Blastaar
Blastaar - 1/17/2023, 9:46 AM
Not gonna lie, this might be one of the first ones they ACTUALLY get right.(The Witcher wasn't bad.)
MrDandy
MrDandy - 1/17/2023, 10:06 AM
@Blastaar - Witcher is a book not a video game and the tv series (very loosely) follows the books which take place before the games.
Blastaar
Blastaar - 1/17/2023, 1:24 PM
@MrDandy - Thanks for informing me, I didn't know which one came before the other. I haven't read any of the books though. What is the consensus on the that, the books vs the game/s?
Blastaar
Blastaar - 1/17/2023, 1:31 PM
@MrDandy - Have you read the books and played the game as well? What do you think, or well/bad did they do?
Himura
Himura - 1/17/2023, 3:30 PM
@Blastaar - Arcane...
Blastaar
Blastaar - 1/17/2023, 3:45 PM
@Himura - That's my absolute FAVORITE video game adaption of all time. I don't know how I forgot that one, maybe because it's animated no live action, but still, yeah, NOTHING gets any better that Arcane in my personal opinion. From the art to the writing, it's impeccable.
AgentSmith
AgentSmith - 1/17/2023, 9:47 AM
I was so excited and it did NOT let down. If you are fan of the game at all, then check it out. I'm sure there will be some liberties, there has to be to make it a series. But, they took the first 90 mins right out of the game, especially the opening sequence. Loved it and really excited for more!
bobbo68
bobbo68 - 1/17/2023, 9:48 AM
I haven’t played the game but after watching the show I want to get a PlayStation and give it try. Pedro Pascal is super busy I’m glad for him he really killing it with The Last Of Us and The Mandalorian coming in March.

pitbull76
pitbull76 - 1/17/2023, 10:43 AM
@bobbo68 - Agreed said the same things to some friends would get a PS4 just to play the games.I have a feeling plp are going to get into this like the walking dead once word of mouth spreads.
Himura
Himura - 1/17/2023, 3:31 PM
@bobbo68 - The remaster comes out in March if you have a PC
CorndogBurglar
CorndogBurglar - 1/17/2023, 9:57 AM
It's interesting how video games are mostly praised for following the games as closely as possible, but comic movies get so much leniency.

Like, look at things like Resident Evil and Halo. Shows that were pretty much universally hated by fans. Then this comes out, it's VERY close to the game in the first episode, and everyone loves it.

Weird how it works. But that's the thing. Whatever the project is, it became popular enough to get movies and shows because of how good the source is. As soon as you change the source you're taking a huge risk because if it isn't better then you're already behind the 8 ball.

I'm of the opinion that you should always stick as close to the source as possible. Then if you want to do something different make some spin offs or something.
MrDandy
MrDandy - 1/17/2023, 10:08 AM
Well deserved. First episode was great. In one episode it’s already easily the best video game adaption yet. Hopefully it can keep the quality up.
TheHumanSpider2
TheHumanSpider2 - 1/17/2023, 10:31 AM
I didnt like some of the changes, especially how things that were subtle in the game are not "in your face", but nothing big, it was a pretty good episode, and since it was the pilot, it will more than likely only get better from here on.
Just keep the episodes 60 minutes long, 80 minutes is too much.

Btw, the guy at the beginning was the asshole brother in law from The Mummy movies?
WarMonkey
WarMonkey - 1/17/2023, 10:42 AM
@TheHumanSpider2 - Not sure about the Mummy but that's Gabriel Luna and was in Agents of Shield as Ghostrider and was awesome there. Also Terminater Dark Fate which he was not awesome in cause no-one was in that movie.
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