Game of Thrones’ breakout star Bella Ramsey to star as lesbian icon Ellie in HBO’s The Last of Us
Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey. (Getty Images)
Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey are confirmed to star as Joel and Ellie in the HBO TV adaptation of PlayStation franchise The Last of Us.
The news was confirmed by Neil Druckman on Twitter, the writer/director of the game and co-president of studio Naughty Dog.
Aaaaand there’s the other half. Stoked to have Pedro aboard our show! https://t.co/Etsjvfb2Wi
— Neil Druckmann (@Neil_Druckmann) February 11, 2021
Pascal has most recently starred in Disney+’s The Mandalorian to great success, the show being recently nominated for a Golden Globe. He also starred as villain Max Lord in Wonder Woman 1984 and Oberyn Martell in Game of Thrones.
Ramsey is best known for her role in HBO’s Game of Thrones as Lyanna Mormont. More recently she was seen in season two of the BBC’s His Dark Materials adaptation.
Both roles were highly coveted, with Mahershala Ali also rumoured to play Joel and voice actor Carolyn Strauss from Naughty Dog’s other game series Uncharted showing interest in the role of Ellie in the upcoming HBO adaptation.
The Last of Us series has been written by Druckmann and Craig Mazin, creator of Chernobyl, with Carolyn Strauss to produce (Chernobyl, Game of Thrones). Sony Pictures Television, PlayStation Productions and Word Games are also involved.
Greenlit last year, the series will be based on the critically acclaimed video game released in 2013. Set in America twenty years after modern civilisation is destroyed, the country is ravaged by a viral pandemic. Joel (Pascal) is a gruff father tasked with escorting fourteen-year-old Ellie (Ramsey) out of an oppressive quarantine zone through hordes of infected zombies.
In the first game’s downloadable content, Ellie is confirmed to be a lesbian. The game was followed by a sequel released last year that holds the record for the most Game of the Year awards, in which Ellie must continue to survive. Both games are well known for their bleak tone and ultra violence.
Pascal also hit the news recently in support of his trans sister Lux.
