After two long years of waiting, the series The Last of Us will make its big comeback on HBO this Monday, April 14, 2025. This is an opportunity for us to look back at the most anticipated and promising post-apocalyptic science fiction projects.
#1 The Last of Us (season 2), by Neil Druckmann and Craig Mazin (HBO)
Launched in 2023 on HBO, the series The Last of Usis the adaptation of the eponymous classic of the video game developed by Naughty Dog. Received with rave reviews from the press and a large part of the public, the series is one of the most important shows of the decade for HBO, alongside House of the Dragon and The White Lotus. Two years later, Ellie and Joel are preparing to make their big comeback with a second season that will adapt the first part of The Last of Us Part II. This second season, seven episodes long, also benefits from very positive reviews from the press, which highlighted a greater presence of the infected and some major changes in the structure of the story. We were able to discover the first episode in preview; our review is available here. We can't wait to see what happens next!
Release date: April 14, 2025.
#2 The Eternaut
Published between 1957 and 1969 in the pages of the Argentinian magazine Hora Cero Semanal, the comic strip The Eternaut by Héctor Germán Oesterheld and Francisco Solano López is one of the treasures of post-apocalyptic Spanish. During an alien invasion, a deadly snowstorm falls on Buenos Aires; a group of friends tries to survive in this chaos. In 2020, Netflix announced the start of work on a series adaptation of this classic, developed by Buenos Aires screenwriter Ricardo Darín. The first season will be released on April 30, 2025 on the platform with the red N; Although its release may be somewhat overshadowed by the launch of Alain Chabat's Asterix and Obelix: The Battle of the Chiefs (scheduled for the same day), The Eternaut could well be one of the great surprises of the end of the year! Release date: April 30, 2025. #3 28 Years Later, by Danny Boyle Already crowned with glory thanks to A Little Murder Between Friends (1994) and especially Trainspotting (1996), British director Danny Boyle scored a huge hit in 2002 with 28 Days Later Late, a post-apocalyptic epic written by his compatriot Alex Garland and starring Irish actor Cillian Murphy. After a first sequel (28 Weeks Later) released in 2007, rumors of a third film have long been fueled by the trio. It's now official, 28 Weeks Later will be released on our screens next June and will be the first part of a new trilogy. Marking the return of Boyle behind the camera and Garland to the script, the feature film will be set in the North of England. The first trailer, released by Sony Pictures at the end of 2024, is particularly successful and makes us really want to discover it!
Release date: June 18, 2025.
#4 Death Stranding 2: On The Beach, by Hideo Kojima
Six years after the first Death Stranding, Hideo Kojima is reuniting with his many fans with Death Stranding 2: On The Beach. Set in a near future ravaged by the collapse of the barrier between the world of the dead and the world of the living, the first game offered innovative gameplay, putting us in the role of a courier tasked with surveying the surface to deliver or collect packages. Announced in 2022, Death Stranding 2: On The Beach saw its writing disrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic. Always a cinema lover, the father of Metal Gear Solid allowed himself the luxury of entrusting a role to the gigantic Australian filmmaker George Miller, known among others for the Mad Max saga. Note that the start of work on a Death Stranding film co-produced by Hideo Kojima, Ari Aster (Midsommar) and the leading independent film studio A24, was recently confirmed. The project will be written and directed by Michael Sarnoski (Pig, A Quiet Place: A Quiet Place).
Release date: June 26, 2025.
#5 BULLET/BULLET
South Korean director Sunghoo Park has become one of the biggest names in Japanese animation. Revealed by the first season of Jujutsu Kaisen, which he directed for the MAPPA studio, the man who began his career as an animator for the great Shinichirō Watanabe on Terror in Resonance (2014), has since directed the series Ninja Kamui for Adult Swim. With Bullet/Bullet, a project for which he wrote the story entirely, Sunghoo Park will immerse us in an original post-apocalyptic world, inspired by the Mad Max saga. Disney+ has managed to obtain exclusivity. Release scheduled for this summer!
Release date: July 16, 2025.
#6 Fallout (season 2), by Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy
While waiting for the release of Fallout 5, which would be a priority for Bethesda according to the latest reports, Amazon Prime Video has made its mark with the first season of Fallout, released in 2024 on the platform. Developed by the duo of Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy, who notably produced the series Westworld, which turned audiences' heads between 2016 and 2022, the first season was a huge success with audiences and critics. With great mastery of both form and content, it was immediately considered one of the best video game adaptations. A second season was ordered by Amazon; It should likely hit our screens in 2026.
Release date: unknown.
#7 I Am Legend 2, by Steven Caple Jr.
Since the theatrical release of Francis Lawrence's I Am Legend, an adaptation of Richard Matheson's 1954 post-apocalyptic classic, a second film has been in the pipeline at Warner Bros. First announced as a prequel, the feature film has been reworked several times since 2012. Ten years later, I Am Legend 2 has been made official by Warner Bros. Discovery and will mark the return of screenwriter Akiva Goldsman - who wrote the screenplay for the first installment - and actor Will Smith in the lead role. It would ultimately be a sequel to the alternate ending included on the DVD edition and closer to that of Matheson's original novel. Actor Michael D. Jordan (The Wire, Black Panther) is also attached to the project to occupy one of the lead roles. In a recent interview, Will Smith stated that Jordan will not play the role of his son. The direction was entrusted to Steven Caple Jr., known among others for Creed II.To be continued!
Release date: unknown.
#8 Quietly 3, by John Krasinski
The first film A Quiet Place caused a sensation when it was released in 2018. Taking full advantage of its clever concept, which allowed for some great moments of tension, director and screenwriter John Krasinski brought a breath of fresh air to the world of post-apocalyptic horror. The second film, released in 2020, was a great critical and public success, allowing Paramount Pictures to launch a prequel (with rather disappointing results) with A Quiet Place: Day One by Michael Sarnoski. However, John Krasinski is still working on his third film project A Quiet Place, which is supposed to complete the trilogy, and currently has no release date.
Release date: unknown.
#9 Swan Song, by Russell Rothberg and Greg Nicotero
In an America devastated by World War III, a former wrestler has the delicate mission of protecting a young girl whose special gift could save all of humanity. Does this pitch remind you of The Last of Us? No wonder! Robert McCammon's novel Swan Song (1987), published in France by the excellent publishing house Monsieur Toussaint Louverture, was one of Neil Druckmann's main sources of inspiration for writing his cult video game. Good news, a series adaptation has been in development since January 2024. In February 2025, we learned that screenwriter Russell Rothberg, known among other things for his work on the series Long Bright River and Foundation, has been named showrunner. The show is produced by none other than Greg Nicotero, executive producer and head of makeup for the series The Walking Dead. For the time being, we do not know which network will host the series in its catalog, nor its release date. But we're having a hard time hiding our curiosity tinged with impatience!
Release date: unknown.
#10 Mad Max 6, by George Miller
Some box-office failures hurt, and not just the film studios that backed the project. This is, of course, the case with Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, released in May 2024 - nine years after the exceptional Mad Max: Fury Road - and which was a failure as dizzying as it was unfair. With this fifth Mad Max film centered on Imperator Furiosa, the late George Miller delivered a fascinating summary of his obsessions as well as a true lesson in directing. While the failure of Furiosa—correlated with the failures of Joker: Folie À Deux by Todd Phillips and Mickey 17 by Bong Joon-ho—could jeopardize the official release of Mad Max 6 by the Warner group, George Miller and Tom Hardy have both confirmed their intention to complete the project. Fingers crossed!
Release date: unknown.
And you, what are the post-apocalyptic projects you're most excited about? Don't hesitate to tell us in the comments section.
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