HBO's runaway hit The Last of Us has been steadily growing its fanbase since its January 15 debut, with the most recent episode drawing a mind-blowing 8.1 million viewers. And it might not be the epic story arc or even the terrifying monsters bringing fans back week after week, but instead some familiar faces we've all come to know and love on the small screen over the years. Here's where you've seen some of your favorite The Last of Us characters before. Warning: Spoilers ahead!
You already know some of these actors by name.
Stars Bella Ramsey and Pedro Pascal were already fairly big names before they signed on to the project, although you might not necessarily have recognized them at first. Pedro spent almost all of his Mandalorian time behind a mask, and when 19-year-old Bella was on Game of Thrones she was quite a bit younger. But plenty of the show's other cast members have similarly robust résumés.
We instantly recognized Anna Torv from another dark series.
Anna plays Tess, Joel's sadly brief romantic interest, in the first two episodes of the series. Although her character's life was cut tragically short this time, we've gotten to know (and love) Anna as Dr. Wendy Carr in Netflix's beloved series Mindhunter and as Olivia Dunham in Fringe — two other shows we would like to see get another season.
Nick Offerman is a long way from Pawnee, Indiana.
Parks and Recreation fans may have been surprised to see Nick show up in The Last of Us after making a name for himself as a comedic actor with his role as Ron Swanson, but the 52-year-old absolutely nails his take on the doomsday-prepper-turned-hopeless-romantic Bill in the HBO hit.
In fact, there wasn't a dry eye in the house when the storyline between Bill and his partner, Frank — played by the brilliant Murray Bartlett, who HBO viewers likely remember from his roles in The White Lotus and Looking — came to a close.
HBO actually relied heavily on some of its former stars.
Not many people get a happy ending in the post-apocalyptic world of The Last of Us, but we suppose Rutina Wesley gets about as close as one can. The True Blood alum — who played straight-talking favorite Tara in the series — seems to be doing OK for herself onscreen as she and Joel's brother start a new life in a town they've built together.
And there's one familiar face you felt like you should've known but didn't.
Joel's daughter only appears in the first episode of the series (and then again in flashbacks), but that hasn't stopped fans from talking about her. That's because actress Nico Parker is a spitting image of her famous mother (and fellow HBO star, thanks to her role in Westworld), Thandie Newton. We're talking carbon copy, folks. The similarity is uncanny!
The finale episode will drop on March 12.
The last and most-anticipated episode of The Last of Us will have to compete with the Oscars on Sunday night, but thanks to on-demand availability and streaming options, we don't think anyone will have any trouble tuning in to see exactly how the showrunners wrap up this first season before getting to work on a future for the survivors in season two.
We know we'll be waiting to see just who makes it out of this first chapter alive and whether Joel and Ellie will cross the finish line together in the end.
