The Last of Us viewership figures are out, and have proven that the new series is a major success for HBO and HBO Max. Adapted from the critically-acclaimed video game series of the same name, it stars Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey in the lead roles of Joel and Ellie respectively. Now, millions are watching their story play out in live-action on the small screen.
High viewership figures for The Last of Us on HBO Max revealed
The Last of Us has scored high viewership for HBO and HBO Max. It was revealed today (January 17, 2023) that the series premiere drew 4.7 million viewers across linear and HBO Max. This makes its the second-biggest HBO debut, after last year’s Game of Thrones spinoff, House of the Dragon. That show managed a history-making 9.986 million viewers across linear and HBO Max, making it the largest audience for any new original series from pay cabler.
HBO has made clear that their Sunday night viewing figures, represented here, typically represent around 20%-40% of the show’s total audience numbers per episode. Once the full weekly figures come out, we could be looking at over 10 million total viewers tuning in for the first episode.
The Last of Us takes place 20 years after a cataclysmic event which brought humanity to its knee. Infections of humans meant that fungal hosts would take over their bodies, before using it to attack other humans in their path. When Ellie is found bitten, but hasn’t succumbed to the virus, it’s left up to Joel to take her across the country, in the hope that she could hold the answers to bringing the deadly pandemic to an end.
The Last of Us continues Sundays on HBO, and is available to stream exclusively on HBO Max.
