Featured Image Credit: HBO
Topics: TV and Film
Emma Guinness
The Last of Us is the zombie show that's got everyone on the edge of their seats, and there's one scene, in particular, that's causing a storm online.
The scene features a formidable bloater - the rarest and most terrifying form of the infected - and let's just say they could give Stranger Things' Vecna a serious run for his money.
The scene, which took place in episode five of the hit HBO show, features the bloater emerging from the flames of a burning building.
On the off chance that you're unfamiliar with the show, it's a post-apocalyptic drama set in 2023 where a fungal pandemic has turned people into zombie-like creatures - including the rare bloaters.
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Praising the scene, one viewer gushed: "HBO's The Last of Us finally gave us the bloater omg. It was incredible and the head splitting scene [sic].
"The movement was so accurate. Just slow but very dangerous when they get close.
"Now I'm excited for the shambler and the Rat King."
A second agreed, adding: "The new episode of The Last of Us was insane probably my favourite so far. Finally got to see more of the infected like the Bloater."
"Just watched episode 5 of The Last of Us and I think that bloater might've been the scariest looking thing I've seen on TV," wrote a third.
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"Holy f**k episode 5 of #TheLastOfUs was f**king epic!!!!," shared a fourth.
As you can imagine, creating the bloater was no mean feat, as the show's prosthetics designer Barrie Gower revealed in an interview with Variety: "The entire bloater suit weighed 40 kilograms or more, roughly 88 pounds, which was a heavier build than Vecna from Stranger Things.
"On top of the bloater, there were 10-15 stunt performers dressed in clicker costumes and 40-60 infected extras who wreaked havoc on the Kansas City cul-de-sac in The Last of Us.
"It took a team of 65 prosthetic artists five hours to finish all the makeup. Since the clicker attack takes place at night, the makeup process would start around 3:00 or 4:00 p.m. to begin shooting at 9:00 p.m."
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Needless to say, the actor who took on the role had to be tall, and the bloater was portrayed by Adam Basil, a 6'6 stuntman from the UK, who has also appeared in the likes of Game of Thrones.
But contrary to what you might think, the suit itself wasn't as heavy as you'd imagine.
Gower said: "We had a whole copy of his body that we modelled the bloater prosthetics over in modelling clay.
"We cast it out of a foam rubber and foam latex, which is very lightweight. It’s almost like an upholstery foam, a very spongy sort of material."
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The Last of Us is airs on Sky Atlantic and Now TV every Monday.