Another View: Like ‘The Last of Us’ Shows, We Probably Aren’t Ready for Next Outbreak

The Last of Us Science Adviser Says COVID Changed How We View Zombie Stories

Behavioral ecologist David Hughes, who consulted on the video game that inspired the hit TV show The Last of Us, speaks about how our experience with the COVID pandemic changed the way we relate to zombie fiction

Another View: Like ‘The Last of Us’ shows, we probably aren’t ready for next outbreak

If you watch HBO’s “The Last of Us,” you see how a pandemic didn’t destroy the world — failure to communicate did. Trust collapsed, institutions froze and the people paid the price. That’s fiction. But it’s also a warning. In 2025, it’s not a zombie-creating fungus we face — it’s a slow-motion unraveling of America’s public health and civic response systems. Bird flu is spreading through cattle. Measles cases are surging. Misinformation is every…

This Sunday 25th of May came to an end the second season of The Last of Us, with the broadcast of the seventh chapter entitled “Convergence”. Beyond the impact of this successful franchise, behavioral ecologist David Hughes — who was also a consultant for the video game of the same name that inspired the television series — explained how the interest of nuclear weapons viewers has changed to zombies. With a third season already confirmed, the se…