‘The Last Of Us’ HBO Series: Release Date, News, Cast, and More!

The Last of Us premieres its first season in just a few short months! And fans of the epic post-apocalyptic video game cannot wait to see the TV series adaptation. The HBO series guarantees to be just as thrilling and gut-wrenching as the original game. 

HBO has confirmed, as of today, November 2, 2022, that the series will premiere on Sunday, January 15, 2023, at 9PM EST. Accompanying the news was the release of the official teaser art as well, which you can see below.

This show has been a long time coming. Garnering instant acclaim, the Naughty Dog game was released in 2013 with the second installment premiering in 2020. 

If you aren’t familiar with the plot of The Last of Us, you’ll want to get caught up before its release. This is one show you won’t want to miss.

The Last of Us HBO Series Storyline

It’s the year 2033. For the past 20 years, the world has been plagued by a fungal infection that spreads and turns people feral, violent, and insane. They increasingly devolve further and further into deformed creatures with no eyes, relying entirely on echo-location. These monsters are called clickers or the infected.

Joel Miller gets hired to bring a young girl named Ellie across the country to a medical facility. Doctors believe Ellie could hold the cure to this plague as she is immune to the infection. Getting her across the wasteland is of the utmost importance, and could potentially save the world. 

While that’s the premise of the original game, we might see more elements from The Last of Us: Part II or the prequel game The Last of Us: Left Behind. 

Also, the creators might introduce ideas not used in the original game into The Last of Us HBO series. Craig Mazin, series co-creator and writer, talked about how he collaborated with the video game creator. He talked about how they discussed ideas that never made it into the final cut of the game and incorporated them.

But you don’t have to worry that the HBO series plans to undo all of the canonical work of the game. Mazin continued, “The changes that we’re making are designed to fill things out and expand. Not to undo, but rather to enhance…It’s not like we just decided, ‘Well, wouldn’t it be cool if there’s one episode where Joel and Ellie get on motorcycles and confront a motorcycle gang?’ There’s no episodic nonsense here. The things that are new and enhancing of the storyline that we’re doing are connected in organic, serious ways that I think fans of the game and newcomers alike will appreciate.”

The Last of Us HBO Series Production & Filming

The Naughty Dog team that created the video game will have a hand in The Last of Us HBO retelling. Both Naughty Dog and PlayStation Productions are tackling the production.

Neil Druckmann, the writer and co-director of the first game (co-writer and co-director of the second game) co-created the show as well. The CEO of Naughty Dog, Evan Wells, acted as an executive producer. Gustavo Santaolalla, the creator of both games’ scores, will have his music featured in the show.

Asad Qizilbash co-executive produced the show. She had a hand in the Uncharted movie and has credits in the Sony games Death Stranding, God of War, and Ghost of Tsushima. 

The cast and crew filmed for 13 months in Calgary, Alberta. Before they could enter the country, the whole team had to quarantine for 2 weeks to stay in line with COVID-19 protocol. This phase of production wrapped in June 2022. 

Neil Druckmann talked about the difficulty of shifting mediums during production. “You have to figure out [with a TV show] how it communicates ideas or tells stories. In removing the interactivity of the story, how do you make it unique for this other medium? It’s an interesting challenge, and I think there’s a lot to learn from it… Craig [Mazin] had ideas about how to adapt the show, it became intriguing to work with another creative who I admire. It just became a no-brainer – and to do it under the umbrella of HBO and all their content.”

The Last of Us Cast

Who will appear in The Last of Us HBO show to bring the infamous characters to life on screen? You’ll be happy to know that the two stars playing the main roles have video game experience.

Pedro Pascal, well known for his roles in The Mandalorian and Game of Thrones, will play Joel Miller. He voiced Paolo in Dishonored 2, an Arkane Studios game. Troy Baker, the original voice of Joel Miller, couldn’t be more pleased. He posted on Instagram, “This IS the way. Full support. Full stop. Can’t wait for you to show me a side of Joel I never knew, Pedro.”

Bella Ramsey, another Game of Thrones alum, will play Ellie. She voiced Freya in the Doctor Who Infinity: The Dalek Invasion of Time episode. 

Gabriel Luna will play Joel’s younger brother named Tommy. Anna Torv will play Tess, Joel’s smuggling partner. Storm Reid will play Ellie’s good friend Riley. Melanie Lynskey will play Kathleen, a character not featured in the video game. New characters also include Graham Green as husband Marlon and Elaine Miles as wife Florence.

Parks and Recreation’s Nick Offerman will play Bill. Murray Bartlett will play Frank and Nico Parker will play Joel’s daughter, Sarah. Brad Leland will play Mr. Adler, Lamar Johnson will play Henry, and Kevionn Woodard will play Sam.

Fans of the video game will be pleased to know that the original voices will appear as well. Troy Baker, the original Joel, and Ashley Johnson, the original Ellie, will play undisclosed roles. The original Tommy, Jeffrey Pierce, will play Perry. And the original Marlene (Merle Dandridge) will play herself once again.

The Last of Us Release Date News

So when will we get to see this incredible story shown on a non-interactive screen? The nine-episode first season premieres on Sunday, January 15 at 9pm EST! It will also stream in 4K on HBO Max.

That gives you just enough time to finish the original games before the tales of Joel and Ellie get spoiled on screen. And to get you excited for the coming show, you can always watch the trailer that just got released on “Outbreak Day!”

Are you excited for The Last of Us HBO series? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below!