What song plays in ‘The Last of Us’ episode 9 credits?

Warning: the following article contains spoilers for The Last of Us season one finale, “Look for the Light.”

Over the past nine weeks, not only has HBO’s The Last of Us succeeded in breaking our hearts over and over again with harrowing character moments and deaths, but it’s undeniable that music has played a key role in evoking all of these feelings.

From the use of Depeche Mode’s “Never Let Me Down Again,” (in both the premiere and its haunting reprisal in episode six) to Linda Ronstadt’s “Long Long Time” in the Bill and Frank episode), there’s been many a perfectly suited soundtrack playing the show’s characters off as the credits roll. 

This was very much the case for the season one finale, “Look for the Light,” as well. After Joel’s murderous rampage through the Firefly hospital in his effort to retrieve Ellie and save his surrogate daughter’s life, he drives her back to Tommy’s encampment in Jackson, Wyoming and tells her a lie about the events that unfolded while she was unconscious.

As they arrive, Ellie hits Joel with some cards-on-the-table honesty about the events of the “Left Behind” flashback episode, name dropping Riley as the person she had to kill in the past, a revelation she made back in episode four while in Kansas City. 

Following this, she asks Joel to swear truth to the narrative he sold her about the Fireflies, and that “they’d given up” on searching for a cure. He swears, and she begrudgingly accepts his lie. Cut to the credits, and a melancholy guitar plays off The Last of Us season one. 

‘Look for the Light’ credits song

The song which plays out the first season of The Last of Us is “The Path (A New Beginning)” by Gustavo Sanatolalla, the original composer from The Last of Us video game. This is exactly the same song that is used in the credits of the source game as well, which ends with the two scenes playing out almost exactly the same.

Santaolalla’s work has featured extensively throughout both of Naughty Dog’s video games as well as the HBO adaptation. He is responsible for the song which ended episode eight, “When We Are in Need,” as well as various instrumental interludes throughout the series. Perhaps most notably he is behind The Last of Us’ main theme, which features in the opening credits of every episode.