‘The Last Of Us’ Episode 5 Streams on HBO Max Early
The fifth episode of the HBO show will begin airing on Friday, February 10th.
The Chiefs and the Eagles don’t have to worry about HBO stealing the spotlight from them. The Last of Us will air its fifth episode early on HBO Max and on-demand on Friday, February 10 at 9 p.m. ET, two days before it airs.
Although the episode will still premiere on HBO’s linear channel on Sunday, February 12 at 9 p.m. ET, the early streaming premiere is almost certainly intended to avoid a situation where the episode’s ratings could be boosted by watching the Super Bowl cannibalized. The annual sporting event is typically one of the top-rated shows each year, with a total of 112.3 million viewers on NBC and streaming last year. This year’s game – which will see the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs go head-to-head and Rihanna officiating the legendary halftime show – will be aired on Fox and is scheduled to begin Sunday at 6:30 p.m. ET.
“The Last of Us” has been an instant hit since it premiered on HBO last month; The first episode attracted 4.7 million viewers on the first day of availability and has since grown to 22 million viewers in the US. Subsequent episodes of the video game adaptation have seen steadily increasing viewership, with Episode 2 attracting 5.7 million viewers and Episode 3 attracting 6.4 million viewers.
Aside from the Super Bowl, The Last of Us airs concurrently with several other major broadcast events. This Sunday’s episode aired alongside the Grammy Awards, hosted by Trevor Noah, which aired on CBS and streamed on Paramount+. On March 12, the show’s first season finale will premiere to coincide with the 95th Annual Academy Awards, hosted by Jimmy Kimmel and aired on ABC. According to HBO, the series will premiere concurrently with linear airing after the fifth episode, so the network probably isn’t as concerned about competing with the Oscars for ratings glory.
Based on the 2013 video game developed by Naughty Dog for PlayStation 3, The Last of Us stars former Game of Thrones cast members Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey as Joel and Ellie, the main characters of the original video game. Set in the post-apocalyptic United States, where a fungal infection has ravaged the world, the story follows Joel, a smuggler working in Boston, as he is tasked with protecting 14-year-old Ellie on a journey across the country. The show, co-hosted by original game creator Neil Druckmann and Craig Mazin, has already been renewed for a second season.
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https://www.indiewire.com/2023/02/the-last-of-us-episode-5-streaming-early-hbo-max-1234806602/ ‘The Last Of Us’ Episode 5 Streams on HBO Max Early
