Last of Us Episode 3 release date, time, and trailer for HBO's zombie show

Goodbye Boston. After a disastrous mission outside of the QZ, new places and new faces are in store Joel and Ellie in the highly-anticipated Episode 3 of The Last of Us.

Things have not exactly gone according to plan on the quest to deliver Ellie to the Fireflies. And following some shocking face-to-face confrontation with both Runners and Clickers, as well as an explosive turn of events, the central duo must now take their journey beyond the crumbling city and into the world of unknown dangers in the third installment of HBO’s hit show.

Here’s everything you need to know about what’s next for Ellie and Joel, including The Last of Us Episode 3’s release date, plot, trailer, and more.

When is the release date for The Last of Us Episode 3?

Episode 3 of The Last of Us arrives on HBO and HBO Max on Sunday, January 29, 2023.

What is the release time for The Last of Us Episode 3?

The Last of Us airs at 9 p.m. Eastern on HBO and HBO Max each week on Sunday.

How many episodes are left in The Last of Us?

The Last of Us Season 1 is made up of nine episodes, which means after this week, six episodes are left.

What is the plot of The Last of Us Episode 3?

Episode 3 of The Last of Us, titled “Long Long Time,” will see Joel lead Ellie beyond the metropolitan area of Boston and to the gated encampment of survivalist Bill and his partner, Frank. Plus, the relationship between Bill and Frank will be fleshed out, showing when they met and how the two found companionship in the face of disaster. Coming in at a runtime of a whopping 80 minutes, the third installment promises plenty of apocalyptic details and drama to unfold.

Who is in the cast for The Last of Us?

Leading the cast of The Last of Us are Pedro Pascal as Joel Miller and Bella Ramsey as Ellie Williams. Alongside the story’s central pair, the show features Nick Offerman as Bill, Murray Bartlett as Frank, Melanie Lynskey as Kathleen, Anna Torv as Tess, Gabriel Luna as Tommy, Graham Greene as Marlon, Elain Miles as Florence, Nico Parker as Sarah, Merle Dandridge as Marlene, Storm Reid as Riley Abel, Lamar Johnson as Henry, and Keivonn Woodard as Sam. Troy Baker, Ashley Johnson, and Jeffery Pierce, the video game voice actors for Joel, Ellie, and Tommy, respectively, are also set to make appearances in the series.

Is there a trailer for The Last of Us Episode 3?

Yes, HBO released a preview for The Last of Us Episode 3, and it teases the entrance and backstory of the two characters, Bill and Frank. It also features Joel and Ellie traversing a landscape littered with skulls and Joel warning Bill about the threat of violent raiders in the night — as well as a sneak peak of Bill and Frank seemingly under attack.

What happened in The Last of Us Episode 2?

Episode 2 of The Last of Us, “Infected,” begins in Jakarta, Indonesia in 2003. Government officials take Ibu Ratna, a professor of mycology (the study of fungi), to a laboratory, where they have her look at a sample of Cordyceps fungus taken from a human, which she says is impossible. She is then lead into an autopsy room to examine a dead woman who appears to have been bitten by another human. When the scientist puts some tweezers into the corpse’s mouth, she pulls out wriggling tendrils of Cordyceps and flees the room in horror.

The government official explains that the woman went crazy and bit her coworkers at a flour mill outside of the city, before she was fatally shot. When they took the bitten people in for observation, they eventually killed them, too, according to protocol. However, he tells Ibu, there are still employees, as well as the original biter, who are unaccounted for. When asked what they should do, the professor emphasizes that there is no medicine, no vaccine, and no cure. Her suggestion is to bomb the whole city.

The episode then jumps forward to Ellie waking up in an overgrown, abandoned building outside of the Quarantine Zone with Joel and Tess closely watching her from a distance. After some back and forth between Tess and Joel about taking Ellie back after discovering she tested positive for the infection, Ellie reveals that Marlene intended on taking her to a Fireflies camp out west where they are working on a cure. Joel is skeptical, but Tess insists on fulfilling their part of the deal to drop Ellie off simply so that they can get what they want.

Out in the destroyed cityscape of Boston, Joel and Tess decide to take the “long way,” which will lead them through a flooded hotel. Along the way, it’s revealed that Ellie got bit when exploring an off-limits abandoned mall near the QZ. After crossing the submerged hotel lobby, the trio get to the hallway, but the route Tess and Joel usually take is caved in. Tess climbs out through the wreckage to unlock one of the hotel room doors, leaving Joel and Ellie alone together. Ellie asks questions about Joel’s background, but he refuses to answer.

Now at the hotel balcony, they see that they can no longer take the long route, as the way is blocked with a sea of Infected all lying on the ground squirming in the sun. Instead, they will have to take the short and deadly route through the museum. Tess explains to Ellie that the Infected are all interconnected by the roots of the Cordyceps in the ground. Stepping on a patch of fungus in one place can alert a hoard of them somewhere else.

Outside of the museum, Joel observes that the fungus roots are bone dry, which he and Tess take to mean that the Infected inside may have finally died out. Once inside, Ellie stumbles across a man freshly ripped to shreds, which causes Joel and Tess tense up. They tell Ellie she has to be silent from now on, as the trio begin to cautiously tiptoe up the stairs toward the exit located on the top floor. Just as they quietly get to the top floor, part of the ceiling collapses behind them, making a big noise. Joel, Tess, and Ellie then hear an unnerving clicking noise and we soon see two Clickers, terrifying advanced stage Infected, with gnarly fungus growing out of their heads. Hiding behind a glass case, Joel mimes to Ellie that Clickers are blind and can only hear. Ellie freaks out when she sees a Clicker up close, causing her to move and make noise, which alerts the Clicker that they are there. Everybody runs and splits up.

After some incredibly tense moments, Tess and Joel kill the Clickers and the trio make it out onto the roof where a path across buildings has been made with a plank. Ellie was bit by one of the Clickers, but she is unconcerned given her immunity from before, and Tess’s ankle is injured — likely a sprain, she says. Eventually, they make it to the Fireflies stronghold at the Capitol Building, but no one is there. When Joel investigates, he finds some Fireflies freshly dead by the truck. Tess races inside to find everyone dead. It appears that someone became infected and chaos broke loose.

With Tess frantically trying to figure out what to do next, Ellie figures out that Tess was actually bitten back at the museum and is infected. Tess pleads with Joel to take Ellie to Bill and Frank and keep her alive as a way to right the wrongs that she and Joel did. Just then, an Infected wakes up, which Joel shoots, but the disturbed hivemind alert dozens of Infected to come their way. Tess begins knocking over barrels of oil and explosives, and Joel drags Ellie, screaming, out of the building. As the Infected reach the Capitol, an Infected reaches Tess and horrifyingly puts its tendrils in her mouth, but not before she sacrifices herself by dropping a lit lighter. The building goes up in flames, with Joel and Ellie escpaing in the distance.

Will there be a The Last of Us Season 2?

With its buzzy premiere — the second-largest in HBO history — and impressive viewership numbers, it was only a matter of time until Season 2 was confirmed. And per The Hollywood Reporter, HBO has officially greenlit The Last of Us Season 2.

And with The Last of Us Part I and Part II — and perhaps a Part III soon — there is lots of plot from the video games available to adapt for the TV series.