The Last Of Us Showrunners Tease Spores In Future Episodes

The Last of Us showrunners Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann teases that spores could eventually happen in future episodes of the HBO Max show. This was confirmed in an interview with Entertainment Weekly.

The series is based on a video game of the same name. The game itself is very story heavy, and it’s evident to fans of the game that the HBO Max show relied heavily on the original source. Of course, fans are thrilled with the results, and there are more new fans of its story now that it has reached a new medium.

But even on just episode 2, fans are wondering where the spores are.

The Last Of Us Could Have Spores In Future Episodes

READ MORE: The Last Of Us Episode 2 Breaks HBO Viewership Records

What made The Last of Us different is the zombies are grounded in reality. It is based on cordyceps, a parasitic fungus which can take over the mind of insects. This fungus spreads to other insects by making spores. In the video game, spores constitute a significant threat because they easily spread in the air. People who accidentally inhale them can easily be infected. Craig Mazin explained:

Part of the issue with the spores is that you run into them quite a bit in the game, although not as much as people think, and if there were that many spores and they were airborne, that infection’s gonna go even faster. It’s hard to imagine how anyone escapes it, and people would probably be wearing masks all the time. In the game, the second you leave a spore space, you’re like, ‘Whoa, whoa, whoa! Get a mile away.’

In the game, players control Joel who must wear a mask in locations with lots of spores to prevent infection. But we never see this on the HBO Max adaptation. Instead, the zombies in The Last of Us went on a traditional zombie infection, through bites.

But it doesn’t end there.

Mazin continues:

I don’t necessarily think we’ve eliminated spores from the universe of our show. We just haven’t gotten there yet. It’s possible that they may come back. We may have a plan, is my point.

Writer of the game and co-showrunner Neil Druckmann said:

The way they were in the game didn’t live up to how realistic the show has become. So we’ve had some conversations recently. I was like, ‘Is there a way to pull it off?’ If enough people show up on day 1, we might get to show the spores.

The Last Of Us Needs A Second Season To Feature Spores

Credit: HBO Max

READ MORE: The Last Of Us Debuts With 100% On Rotten Tomatoes

So, we could see the spores at some point, if we get another season. This also makes some sense, because we still have to see the progression of the zombies like in the game.

So far, we haven’t heard any news of a second season. But there is nothing but good news about the show.

The Last of Us had one of the best openings for an HBO Max series with 4.7 million on premiere night. The show was very close to beating Boardwalk Empire which had 4.81 million, which is second to House of the Dragon with 9.98 million viewers. The second episode of The Last of Us also proved that it has what it takes with a 22% increase in viewership, the largest audience growth in HBO history.

With that said, it might not be long until we hear news about a new season for The Last of Us. It certainly isn’t the last we will hear from them.

What do you think of the spores showing up in The Last of Us? Are you looking forward to seeing a new season of the show? Tell us what you think in the comments below.

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