‘The Last Of Us’ Viewership Keeps Going Up Every Week, Which Just Doesn’t Happen

The Last Of Us had a blockbuster third episode this week, but before anyone even knew it was going to be that good, they had shown up to tune in.

HBO is reporting that The Last of Us had yet another week of increased viewership, meaning it’s gone up every week since the premiere. The second episode was a 22% jump over the first, 4.7 to 5.7 million viewers, and then episode 3 rose 12% over episode 2, up to 6.4 million.

For the record, this kind of thing just…doesn’t happen, even with HBO’s other megahit shows.

• Game of Thrones season 1 lost viewership in week 2 before going up in week 3.
• House of the Dragon gained viewership in week 2, but dove pretty sharply by week 3.
• The White Lotus season 2 lost viewership in week 2, but went up in week 3.
• Euphoria season 1 went down in week 2 and week 3. Season 2 went up, then down by week 3.

Of the shows I’ve checked here, I’ve only seen The White Lotus season 1 go up in viewership every single week of its debut season, including the first three episodes. But the percent increases are lower than The Last of Us, and overall viewership is a fraction of the millions TLOU is getting.

The Last of Us was greenlit for a second season last week, which it’s been confirmed will begin to cover the events of the second game. There will be no lengthy interlude during the 5 year jump in the games, and yes, season 1 is meant to finish all of the first game. It’s been said they may take two seasons to finish the longer second game, which is a dual narrative between two different characters. They have also said they will not go past the source material, like Game of Thrones did, but I harbor a secret suspicion that Naughty Dog may aim to have The Last of Us Part 3 out years from now when season 4 of the show would air. But we’ll see.

The Last of Us is not just a huge hit for HBO, it’s a hit unlike many others they’ve had outside of Game of Thrones and its spin-offs. I expect a ton of people will catch up on the show after it airs and can be binged, and we’ll see season 2 numbers that outpace the first, which is how Game of Thrones grew and grew and became the phenomenon it was.

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