The Last of Us’ second season made its debut yesterday, with the first episode premiering with 5.3 million same-day US cross-platform viewers.
To give you more context, HBO says that marks around a 10 percent increase over the first season’s debut in 2023. The first season’s premiere episode welcomed in a same-day audience of 4.7 million viewers.
Additionally, Deadline reports viewership for the first season of The Last of Us increased by 150 percent over the week prior, as people got up to speed ahead of the new series starting.
Even trailers for The Last of Us are performing well for HBO. Over on YouTube, The Last of Us Season 2 Official Trailer has become the most viewed video on Max’s channel, with 33m views at the time of writing. This trailer was released less than two months ago.
To compare, a trailer for the Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts feature has amassed 30m views since it was uploaded three years ago, while a similar trailer for House of the Dragon released two years ago currently has 27m views.
Following its debut in 2023, HBO said the first season of The Last of Us was averaging nearly 32 million cross-platform viewers per episode in the States. At this time, the company added The Last of Us was the most-watched show in the history of HBO Max in both Europe and Latin America.
The second season picks up five years after the events of the season one finale, with Ellie and Joel – played by Bella Ramsey and Pedro Pascal – now living in Jackson. New cast members this season include Kaitlyn Dever as Abby, Isabela Merced as Dina and Young Mazino as Jesse.
For more on the new series, you can read Eurogamer’s discussion feature on the first episode of The Last of Us season two here, but please be aware of spoilers if you are yet to watch for yourself.