The most shocking deaths on 'The Last of Us,' ranked

Kirsten Acuna,Palmer HaaschMar 13, 2023, 16:15 IST

Kathleen had one of the best deaths of the season.HBO

Warning: There are spoilers ahead for season one of "The Last of Us."
Insider ranked major deaths on HBO's apocalyptic drama by shock value.

While HBO's "The Last of Us" has focused most ardently on Joel (Pedro Pascal) and Ellie (Bella Ramsey) since premiering in January, the show has introduced plenty of striking side characters along the way — too bad most of them have died.

From decapitation by brute strength to getting slashed over 20 times by a meat cleaver, character deaths on "The Last of Us" range from vague to outright gruesome. Even for those who have played the video game "The Last of Us," there were still plenty of surprising moments throughout the show's first season.

Insider went through every major death on the show so far, evaluating them by how gruesome they were, how much they aligned with what fans may have already experienced in the video game, and how attached viewers were to the characters themselves.

Here are all of the major deaths on "The Last of Us," ranked by shock value.

13. James received a meat cleaver to the neck from Ellie after attempting to chop her up for extra food.

James (Troy Baker) was killed by Ellie on season one, episode eight.HBO

12. David's head was brutally bashed in with the same cleaver by Ellie in the following scene.

David (Scott Shepherd) was killed by Ellie on season one, episode eight.HBO

11. Riley was bitten by an infected. Ellie reveals on the finale that she killed Riley after she succumbed to her injury.

We never see Riley's (Storm Reid) on screen death on season one, episode seven. On the finale, Ellie reveals she killed Riley when she turned.HBO

10. Marlene was ruthlessly shot by Joel on the finale.

Marlene (Merle Dandridge) dies on season one, episode nine of "The Last of Us."HBO

9. Marlene shoots Ellie's mother dead after she's bitten.

We learn how Ellie's mom (Ashley Johnson) was killed on season one, episode nine of "The Last of Us."HBO

8. Sarah was gunned down by a soldier.

Sarah (Nico Parker) is killed on the first episode of "The Last of Us."HBO

7. Tess receives the kiss of death from a clicker after she's infected.

Tess (Anna Torv) dies in a different way on the show on episode two of "The Last of Us."HBO

6. Kathleen is mauled to death by a child clicker.

Kathleen (Melanie Lynskey) is killed on season one, episode five of "The Last of Us."HBO

5. Frank chooses to die on his own terms after living a full life.

An unseen character in the game, we never expected to see Frank (Murray Bartlett) in live action. He dies on episode three of "The Last of Us."HBO

4. Sam turns into an infected after getting bit. He's shot to death by his older brother.

Sam (Keivonn Woodard) dies on episode five of "The Last of Us."Liane Hentscher/HBO

3. Henry commits suicide after the shock of killing his younger brother.

Henry (Lamar Johnson) dies at the end of episode five of "The Last of Us."HBO

2. In a shocking twist from the game, Bill decides to die with his partner.

Bill (Nick Offerman) dies on episode three of "The Last of Us."HBO

1. Perry gets viciously decapitated by a bloater.

You may have missed this in the background, but Perry is (Jeffrey Pierce) torn in two while saving Kathleen on episode five.HBO

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