HBO’s upcoming series The Last of Us looks like a pretty darn faithful adaptation of Naughty Dog’s groundbreaking 2013 action-adventure game. The game itself, though full of great set pieces and gameplay elements, was very much story-first, so adapting it to screen will not be that difficult. So if you haven’t played the game, you’ll be able to enjoy as it goes. But that also means you might just assume the show’s zombies are the typical undead shufflers. Not so! The once-human monsters of The Last of Us have a distinct progression and backstory that set them apart. Here’s everything you need to know!
The Last of Us Zombies Aren’t Zombies
I suppose, the first big thing about the zombies in The Last of Us is that they aren’t really zombies. At least, not zombies in the traditional, Romero-Kirkman way we think about them. The outbreak that causes the entire world to collapse comes from a mutated strain of the Cordyceps fungus. Cordyceps are parasitic fungi that usually attack insects, arthropods, or other fungi. Essentially, they don’t tend to bug us too much. However, in The Last of Us, a mutated version of the fungus enters human bodies via airborne spores and nestle themselves in our brains.
The spores grow fungus in human brains until they eventually take over. The infection can also transmit via the saliva of other infected, so your typical bite.
Stage One: Runners
The first stage of infection is what survivals call “Runners.” These people will begin bleeding from their eyes, nose, and mouth, and run quite fast due to the fungus controlling their nervous systems. Their base impulse is to attack other people, often in hordes. While they don’t possess any extra strength, their pain threshold is greater due, again, to fungus brain. (The answer to most questions of “Why can they do that?” is “Fungus Brain.”)
Stage Two: Stalkers
Stalkers are people who’ve been infected anywhere between two weeks and a year. The fungus by this point will have sprung out of their head and body parts, creating a barnacle look. Stalkers, as their name suggests, don’t run toward their prey but will instead wait in dark corners and wait for unsuspecting people to walk by. They also may prop themselves up near a wall and allow the fungus to grow into it. They can then pop out of the fungus when someone traipses by.
Stalkers also tend to moan in pain as the fungus takes over their muscles. So that’s a lot of fun.
Stage Three: Clickers
Probably the most distinctive type of infected in The Last of Us are the Clickers. These are people who’ve been infected for over a year. The fungus will have broken completely out of the top of their head, removing the victim’s eyes and replacing them with a sort of coral shape. They shamble around emitting distinctive clicks which bounce off of walls and objects, allowing these infected to echolocate prey. The fungus will also have reinforced their muscles and calcified their skin, making them much stronger and more durable than the earlier stages.
A consequence of the Clickers’ method of hunting is sound warfare, creating a terrifying portent of doom for people who walk into their general vicinity.
Stage Four-One: Bloaters
Yeah, it just keeps getting grosser, folks. After a person has been infected for many years, their bodies bloat and become entirely overrun with fungus. They are slow and can’t see, but the fungus has reinforced their bodies to the point that they’re basically tanks. Taller, wider, sturdier. Even shotgun blasts to the head won’t stop them. Only fire can topple these guys. They can also break off pieces of fungus from their epidermis and throw them as projectiles. Seriously, just disgusting.
Stage Four-Two: Shamblers
In areas of heavy water, like swamps and reservoirs, rather than turn into Bloaters, people infected for over a year will continue to shamble around relatively lithe. With the excess of moisture, the infected bodies don’t calcify or grow, but will instead emit and expel spores into the air. They also remain much quicker than either Clickers or Bloaters.
Rare Stage: Rat King
If you’ve heard of the horrifying natural phenomenon of a rat king, you might have an inkling what this would mean in context of Cordyceps zombies. Rat kings are when several rats in a confined space will get their tails inexorably entwined and move together as one to survive. This is pretty similar to a rat king infected.
If enough Stalkers group together for a long enough time, their fungal growths will connect up. At that point, whichever member of the collective is the strongest will act as the ambulatory legs. In The Last of Us Part II, this only happens after 20 years of infection.
Final Stage: Death
Even after an infected body dies, the fungus will continue to grow and spread spores out into the air. This is why survivors tend to wear gasmasks when they enter abandoned buildings; it’s best to burn bodies of infected rather than let them rot.
So that’s fun, right? Lots to look forward to in The Last of Us series. We don’t see a ton of infected in the trailers thus far, however the most recent does seem to show a Bloater, so that’s some good nightmare fuel for you.
The Last of Us will premiere on HBO January 15, 2023.
Kyle Anderson is the Senior Editor for Nerdist. You can find his film and TV reviews here. Follow him on Instagram and Letterboxd.