HBO has announced - via GameFragger.com - that the first episode of The Last of Us is set to premiere on Sunday, January 15. It will then be made available to stream in 4K on HBO Max, and this news has been accompanied by confirmation that the debut season will run for a total of nine episodes (so, longer than some eight-episode shows, but not quite up there wil those that run for ten or twelve).
The Last of Us takes place 20 years after modern civilization has been destroyed. Joel, a hardened survivor, is hired to smuggle Ellie, a 14-year-old girl, out of an oppressive quarantine zone. What starts as a small job soon becomes a brutal and heartbreaking journey as they both must traverse the U.S. and depend on each other for survival.
Pedro Pascal plays Joel, while Bella Ramsey has been cast as Ellie.
Joining them in this adaptation of the hit Naughty Dog video game franchise are Gabriel Luna as Tommy, Anna Torv as Tess, Nico Parker as Sarah, Murray Bartlett as Frank, Nick Offerman as Bill, Melanie Lynskey as Kathleen, Storm Reid as Riley, Merle Dandridge as Marlene, Jeffrey Pierce as Perry, Lamar Johnson as Henry, Keivonn Woodard as Sam, Graham Greene as Marlon, and Elaine Miles as Florence.
Ashley Johnson and Troy Baker also star. If their names ring a bell, it's because they played Ellie and Joel in The Last of Us games, and we've known for some time now they landed cameo roles in this small screen take on the property.
The Last of Us, based on the critically acclaimed video game of the same name developed by Naughty Dog exclusively for the PlayStation platforms, is written and executive produced by Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann.
The series is a co-production with Sony Pictures Television and is executive produced by Carolyn Strauss, Evan Wells, Asad Qizilbash, Carter Swan, and Rose Lam.
We also have a very cool poster for the show which you can take a closer look at below.