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When The Last of Us premiered back in 2023, the zombies in the show naturally opened a discussion regarding their similarities and dissimilarities with the zombies on the hit show The Walking Dead.
While the storylines of both shows are different and The Last of Us is an adaptation of the video game of the same name, both shows are essentially survival dramas where zombies appear as one of the main threats.
As the premiere of The Last of Us Season 2 is only a few days away, let us now explore five key differences that exist between the zombies of the two shows.
5 differences between the zombies in The Last of Us and The Walking Dead
The spreading of the zombies differed in The Last of Us and The Walking Dead
How the infection spreads and turns more and more unaffected people into zombies forms the key plot point in any zombie drama. While the most common method of turning into a zombie involves an already infected person biting or scratching an uninfected person, The Walking Dead showed it to be something ingrained, as everyone on the planet was shown to be already infected. They would all turn into zombies once they died.
However, The Last of Us tied the zombie outbreak origination with fungal infection as it was shown that a particular kind of fungus can take over one’s brain and then the host becomes the captor. The fungus then grows out of the head of the host’s body and also the waking of one fungus can lead to the waking of a thousand others as they are connected.
The effect of being scratched by a zombie differed in The Last of Us and The Walking Dead
While The Walking Dead started with everyone being already infected, it also showed that a mere scratch from a person who had died and woken up as a zombie could kill a living person and then lead them to come back as a zombie.
However, The Last of Us emphasizes that only a bite from the zombies can have a fatal effect on the person being bitten. This meant that the ones trying to survive could freely fight the zombies without getting scared about being scratched a little.
The killing method of the zombies varies in The Last of Us and The Walking Dead
The Walking Dead takes the most well known approach of killing the zombies. The character Rick in the show figured out after a point that if they could shoot the zombies in their head, they would die. This method is seen to be used in a lot of zombie movies and shows.
The Last of Us, however, did not entirely depend on shooting in the head as the sole method of finishing off the zombies. While it did remain one of the ways one could kill a zombie, it was also shown that fire and attacks on their bodies could also kill them.
The evolution of the zombies is portrayed differently in The Last of Us and The Walking Dead
Another key point of difference in treatment of zombies lies in how their evolution is shown in both the shows. In The Walking Dead, the zombies did not have much chance at evolution and they were shown to be gradually decaying and rotting.
However, The Last of Us shows a clear progression of evolution once a person is affected. Right after the fungus has taken its hold the human looks the same initially and then gradually proceeds to grow the fungus. Then the infected person looks something like an alien and ultimately when the Cordyceps completely take over their body, they look like monsters.
The cure methods are different in The Last of Us and The Walking Dead
Any zombie drama has a plot line that deals with the exploration of various methods that would help to cure the zombie apocalypse and both of these shows also have a storyline dealing with the same goal. In The Walking Dead however, no cure is ultimately found and despite Rick being apparently immune to the attacks, he was never really used properly to find a cure.
The Last of Us, however, does have a cure in the form of Ellie, who has not turned into a zombie despite being bitten. Given her immunity to the fungus, she is taken to be the key to the cure that would save humanity. However, since Ellie might die in the process of finding the cure through her, Joel does not allow the surgery.
The Walking Dead can be streamed on Netflix.
The Last of Us Season 1 is streaming on Max, and season 2 premieres on April 13, 2025.
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