With record breaking numbers HBO should be renewing The Last of Us for a second season imminently.
Streaming has changed how we look at numbers for film and television, we no longer rely on just the premiere numbers. With that in mind only two episodes of HBO’s ‘The Last of Us’ have aired with the second episode breaking records. The first episode premiered with 4.7 Million views, and after the first week that count was at 18 Million. Episode two premiered with 5.7 Million marking the platform’s largest second episode viewership for their original dramas. With that amount of growth it is also likely to surpass the 18 Million views after a week.
Budget wise you are looking at roughly $10 Million per episode this season, and it doesn’t seem like a show that needs to up that budget in production costs like Game of Thrones. HBO’s The Last of Us may tow the line closer to Westworld, yet unlike it people will continue to watch this show. House of the Dragon was trying to stay under $20 Million per episode so there is no doubt HBO will be happy to run this show alongside it.
If I was to speculate further, there will be a two year delay between season one and two, as they have some work to do in deciding season 2. If they don’t choose to make a new story in-between the events of the first and second game they are going to have to decide how to crack the dual narrative of the game’s sequel.
It will be interesting to see what the finale numbers will be for this season of The Last of Us as everyone will be tuning in to see if they change the ending, as they’ve made minor adjustments so far. Are you excited for more of HBO’s ‘The Last of Us’?
Robert Ring
KissTheGames 