HBO MEGAHIT The Last of Us served up a shocking twist in an explosive season finale, leaving fans stunned.
The post-apocalyptic drama, starring Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey, has kept millions of viewers captivated week-to-week and closed out its first season with a bang, literally.
HBOThe Last of Us, starring Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey, closed out its first season with a bang[/caption]
HBOThe hit show has been renewed for a second season[/caption]
The Last of Us ending explained
WARNING: Contains spoilers for the season 1 finale of The Last of Us
After saving young Ellie (Ramsey) from a cannibalistic cult in the last episode, Joel (Pascal), continues his task of trying to get her across the US, which has been overrun by zombies infected with the cordyceps virus.
A flashback reveals that Ellie’s immunity to the virus is due to her mother, Anna, being bitten by one of ‘the infected’ as she gives birth.
Baby Ellie was found by Marlene, leader of the Fireflies militia group, who killed Anna at her request and placed the little girl in an orphanage.
Back in the present, Ellie and Joel are captured by Firefly soldiers and taken to a hospital.
There, Marlene informs Joel that they are going to use his teenage companion to create a vaccine for the virus, but that the procedure will kill her.
Enraged, Joel kills most of the soldiers and the surgeon, before scooping up a still unconscious Ellie to make their escape.
The pair are confronted by Marlene, who pleads with Joel to help find a cure, but he shoots her and flees.
Later, in an emotional gut punch, Joel lies to Ellie and says that the Fireflies had found others with immunity but failed to create a vaccine from them.
Ellie, suffering from survivors guilt, asks Joel to swear that his story is true, which he does.
Star of the show Ramsey told Vanity Fair that she was “completely in denial” over the shocking ending, while critics raved about the emotional complexity of the plot.
How can I watch The Last of Us?
In the US, the hit show aired on HBO and is available to stream on HBO Max.
Plans start at $9.99 a month, while the ad-free subscription is $15.99.
Meanwhile, in the UK, The Last of Us is available exclusively on Sky Atlantic.
This can be found as part of your Sky TV deal if you have Sky Q, Sky Glass or Sky Stream included in your bundle.
However, for those without Sky TV, a NOW Entertainment membership will allow you to watch the show, with ads, for $9.99 a month.
How many episodes of The Last of Us are there?
There are nine episodes of The Last of Us, which ran live weekly from January 15 until March 12.
Fans have plenty to look forward to, though, as it was renewed for a second season on January 27, less than a week after it premiered.
The first season was based on the plot of the original 2013 video game and the second is expected to cover it’s 2020 sequel.
The Last of Us Part II game is expected to form the base of multiple seasons as the show’s creators do not want their project to overtake the writing of the games.
Writers Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann, the latter of who also wrote the games, have said that they kept the characters true to their existing development arcs in case the series was renewed.
