HBO announced today that The Last of Us has been officially renewed for Season 2. It comes after a premiere that drew a lot of attention on social media and received 22 million domestic viewers.
Even though The Last of Us had only two episodes released, there were already rumors of a second season, actor Bella Ramsey who played Ellie, stated that a renewal was likely, provided viewership continued to rise. 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 gain for any HBO original drama ever.
“I’m humbled, honored, and frankly overwhelmed that so many people have tuned in and connected with our retelling of Joel and Ellie’s journey,” remarked Neil Druckmann, co-president of Naughty Dog and executive producer of the show.
Druckmann continues “The collaboration with Craig Mazin, our incredible cast and crew, and HBO exceeded my already high expectations. Now we have the absolute pleasure of being able to do it again with Season 2! On behalf of everyone at Naughty Dog and PlayStation, thank you.” Craig Mazin, the show's co-executive producer and creator, added: “I’m so grateful to Neil Druckmann and HBO for our partnership, and I’m even more grateful to the millions of people who have joined us on this journey. The audience has given us the chance to continue, and as a fan of the characters and world Neil and Naughty Dog created, I couldn’t be more ready to dive back in.”
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. The series has kept remarkably faithful to the original PlayStation game so far, but it has also not been hesitant to change things, which in some aspect, changes for the better. Fans can watch how the journey of Joel and Ellie continues (along with Nick Offerman's Bill) in Episode 3 on January 29.
Check out our review of Episode 1 and the Terrifying Origins of the Infections here to find more on The Last of US.
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