HBO’s “The Last of Us” returned for its second season on Sunday night, attracting a large audience with its premiere episode. According to Nielsen’s measurement, the show drew 5.3 million viewers, marking a 13% increase from its first season premiere in January 2023.
This growth is not unexpected, given the show’s massive success in its initial run. The series was an immediate hit for HBO, drawing over 5.7 million viewers with its second episode and becoming the second-most watched HBO premiere in over a decade. Its popularity continued to grow throughout the season, with each episode outperforming the last.
The show’s creators, Neil Druckmann and Craig Mazin, had predicted that the series would continue to perform well. The official logline for Season 2 reads: “Five years after the events of the first season, Joel and Ellie are drawn into conflict with each other and a world even more dangerous and unpredictable than the one they left behind.”
The success of “The Last of Us” is attributed to its engaging storyline, strong cast led by Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey, and the popularity of the original video game. With 90 days of delayed viewing included, the show’s season average reaches an impressive 32 million viewers.
Source: https://variety.com/2025/tv/news/the-last-of-us-season-2-ratings-premiere-viewers-1236369005