According to Deadline, 6.4 million people tuned in to the latest episode of The Last Of Us. This shows a twelve percent increase from the numbers for the second episode, which marked the second-largest HBO Original series premiere after House of the Dragon since the 2010 debut of Boardwalk Empire. The episode also jumped up thirty seven percent compared to the first episode debut of 4.7 million views.

The thriller was renewed for a second season last Friday, after only two episodes had aired. This comes with news of a possible Part 3 for the video game franchise; Neil Druckmann, the CEO of Naughty Dog, told Buzzfeed a third installment would only be developed if they could come up “with a compelling story.”

The series takes place after a global pandemic destroys civilization, when a hardened survivor takes charge of a 14-year-old girl who may be humanity’s last hope, via IMDB. Episode three tells a beautiful story of romance found in a seemingly hopeless place in a relatively action-free chapter that instead focuses on the love and sadness that both companionship and loneliness can bring, says IGN. The highlights of the episode are Emmy award winner Murray Bartlett (The White Lotus, August) and three-time Emmy nominee Nick Offerman (The Great North, Pam & Tommy).

Why is everyone crying? That was the happy episode! #thelastofus pic.twitter.com/7cD2bV7WrN

— Neil Druckmann (@Neil_Druckmann) January 30, 2023

The episode also features Linda Ronstadt’s song “Long, Long Time,” which has surpassed Stranger Things’ “Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God)” by Kate Bush in Spotify streams. Fans of the apocalyptic show listened to the song so much that it rose 4,900% in comparison with last week’s stats.
The Last Of Us episodes one, two, and three are currently streaming on HBO Max. Episode four airs this Sunday, February 5th. The official trailer is available below.