The Last Of Us Finale Set An Unbelievable Record
8.2 million viewers tuned in to watch The Last of Us finale, which is a record-breaking number for Britain's Sky Atlantic.
The Last of Us continues to pull record-breaking numbers with its Season 1 finale, according to Deadline. The finale has racked up an intimidating amount of views on Sky Atlantic, one of Europe’s leading media and entertainment companies, and topped out across all services at 8.2 million views. Considering that the finale’s premiere was competing with the Oscars, we wonder how high the initial numbers would have actually been without the awards show competing for views.
If these numbers aren’t impressive enough for you, it’s worth noting that The Last of Us also beat out HBO’s flagship Game of Thrones prequel series, House of the Dragon, in terms of total viewership. Though the breakout series hasn’t yet beat out total viewership for the original Game of Thrones series, it’s safe to say that if these numbers continue to trend upward, it’s only a matter of time. It’s always fun to root for the underdog, but in the case of The Last of Us, “underdog” is no longer a suitable status for the increasingly popular series.
An important thing to consider is that we’re just talking about the Season 1 numbers. There is still so much more story to tell, and Season 2 will be borrowing from the rich source material provided by The Last of Us: Part II video game. It’s also been confirmed by GQ that the upcoming story arc based on the video game will carry across multiple seasons.
Warning, spoilers below!
Though co-creators Neil Druckmann and Craig Mazin have gone on record stating that they want to rely more on the source material for the upcoming seasons, we wonder if Joel (Pedro Pascal) will meet a similar fate to the video game storyline that ultimately has him killed off by firefly leader, Abby. On one hand, Joel’s death is a critical plot point that can’t be glossed over. Conversely, Pedro Pascal’s portrayal of Joel is one of the many reasons why The Last of Us is so wildly popular.
There’s clearly brilliant on-screen chemistry between Joel and Ellie (Bella Ramsey), so you could see why killing Joel off the series could potentially rattle its audience to their very core. However, The Last of Us: Part II carried gamers through Ellie’s revenge arc, which was compelling storytelling in its own right. It’s also worth noting that if the Last of Us showrunners ultimately end up killing Joel off the series, it doesn’t necessarily mean it will be the last we see of Joel.
Though we’re speculating on the plot and resolution of upcoming seasons of The Last of Us, it’s not uncommon for primary characters to revisit their roles in the form of flashbacks used to fold in some exposition. We’ve seen this form of storytelling in series such as How to Get Away With Murder (starring Viola Davis) when Wes Gibbons (Alfred Enoch) met his fate in Season 3. At this point in time, however, we shouldn’t be worrying about Joel’s potential death but rather celebrating the unprecedented success of the HBO Max series.
If The Last of Us is breaking records so early in its run, then there’s no telling how much higher the ratings will climb through subsequent seasons. Though we’re going to have to wait for a little while because Season 2 probably won’t be premiering until late 2024.
